EZ March construction output falls 2.4%
Construction output in the euro area fell by 2.4% month-on-month in March, compared with a revised 1.7% increase in February, according to official data released by the European Union on Monday.
Output fell by 2.4% and 2.3% in building activity and civil engineering, respectively," it added.
"Overall, the setback in March is consistent with leading indicators, but it doesn’t change the picture of a solid quarter overall. Output jumped by 2.5% quarter-on-quarter in Q1, accelerating from 0.4% increase in Q4," said analysts at Pantheon Macroeconomics.
"This trend won’t last. The carry over for Q2—the change over the quarter if output is unchanged at its March level through June—is -1.0%. In addition, leading indicators remain soft. The construction PMI averaged a poorly 45.2 in the first two months of Q2, with the separate new orders index looking even more grim, at 40.9."
Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com