European construction output falls

Output in Europe’s construction sector rose in March after February’s falls but was down on figures from 2014.

In March 2015 compared with February, seasonally adjusted production in the construction sector rose by 0.8% in the Eurozone area (EA19) and by 1.5% across all 28 countries of the European Union EU28 according to first estimates from Eurostat, the statistical office of the UK.

In February 2015, production in construction had dropped by 1.6% and 0.8% respectively.

Comparison of the March 2015 figures with March 2014 shows that production in construction fell by 2.7% in the Euro area and by 1.3% in the EU28.

The month-on-month increase of 0.8% in production in construction in the Euro area was due to building construction rising by 0.3% and civil engineering by 3.2%.

In the EU28, the increase of 1.5% was due to building construction rising by 1.1% and civil engineering by 3.1%.

Among member states with data available, the highest increases were observed in Hungary (+6.3%), Romania (+4.4%) and the United Kingdom (+3.8%). Decreases were recorded in Spain (-1.4%) and Bulgaria (-0.7%).

In terms of the annual comparison, the decrease of 2.7% in the Eurozone was due to building construction falling by 4.0%, while civil engineering rose by 2.5%. In the EU28, the decrease of 1.3% is due to building construction falling by 2.7%, while civil engineering rose by 4.7%.

The largest decreases were registered in Spain (-8.0%), France (-5.3%) and Slovenia (-4.0%), and the highest increases in Romania (+13.3%), Hungary (+12.7%) and the Netherlands (+11.5%).