Eurozone construction PMI drops to 42.4 in March

Hamburg Commercial Bank's Eurozone construction purchasing managers index dropped to 42.4 in March, down from a reading of 42.9 in February.

Output decreased at a slightly quicker pace, with marked declines in housing activity driving the overall contraction as the sector posted its largest decline in seven months.

Subdued demand and a steep decline in new business brought about several job losses and a number of cost-cutting measures, including reduced input buying and subcontractor use. Cost burdens, however, rose at the slowest rate in five months.

Commercial and civil engineering firms also continued to report falling levels of activity, with commercial output delivering its slowest downturn since November 2023.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com