Europe’s construction output slumps

Construction output in the Euro area fell 11.3% in June compared to last year, driven by double digit declines in Spain and Slovenia, according to the latest figures from Eurostat.

For the whole of the EU (EU27), construction output fell 8.1% year-on-year. Building construction output fell by 12.5% in the Euro area and by 9.7% in the EU27, while civil engineering output in June decreased by 4.5% year-on-year in the Euro area but increased by 0.6% in the EU27.

Eurostat, the EU's statistical information provider, said June's construction output fell in ten member states and rose in four. The largest decrease was registered in Spain, which saw output plummet 43.7% in June, compared to the same month in 2010.

Slovenia also reported a significant year-on-year drop in construction output of 35.9%, while a fall of 13.9% was seen in Hungary and a decline of 10% was registered in Romania.

Offsetting this, June's construction output grew by 16.2% in Poland and 4.5% in Sweden, compared to the same point in 2010, while annual increases of 2.6% and 2.3% were reported in Germany and the Netherlands.

Meanwhile, on a monthly comparison basis, Eurostat said construction output fell 1.8% in the Euro area and 1.3% in the EU27 in June, compared to May. Slovenia led the month-on-month fall, registering an 11.9% decline in construction output, while Hungary reported a 5.5% drop and Germany reported a 4.5% drop.

The highest increases in construction output from May to June were registered in the UK, Slovakia and Portugal, which reported rises of 3.7%, 2% and 1.7% respectively.