Eurostat: Romania's 1Q Construction Output Falls At 3rd Slowest Pace In EU

05.18.2011 By Florentina Dragu

Romanian construction output fell 2.9% on the quarter in January to March, the third smallest decline in the European Union, official data showed Wednesday.

In the EU bloc, construction production inched up 0.6% in the first quarter compared with the previous three months, EU's statistics office Eurostat said.

The largest quarterly decreases in construction output were observed in Latvia (-15.1%) and Bulgaria (-9.9%), and the highest increases in Germany (+15.9%) and France (+6.4%).

Compared with the first three months of 2010, construction output in Romania declined 4.8% in the first quarter, the data showed. The EU average construction output was flat on the year.

In annual terms, the biggest declines were recorded in Spain (-37.1%), Slovenia (-24%) and Bulgaria (-15.8%), and the highest increases in Germany (+34.9%), Poland (+17.9%) and Lithuania (+15.9%).