Seasonally adjusted production in May fell by 0.3% compared with April in the 17 countries of the Eurozone (EA17) and by 0.2% across all 27 European Union countries (EU27), according to initial estimates released by Eurostat, the statistical office of the EU. In April 2013, production had risen by 1.0% and 1.1% respectively.
Among the member states with data available for May 2013, construction output fell in nine, rose in four and remained stable in the UK. The largest decreases were registered in Bulgaria (-4.2%), Poland and Slovenia (both -2.8%) and Germany(-2.6%), and the increases in Spain(+4.4%), Romania (+3.1%), Sweden(+1.7%) and the Netherlands (+1.1%).
Building construction decreased by 0.6% in the EA17 area and by 0.5% in the EU27, after +0.5% and +1.2% respectively in April 2013. Civil engineering rose by 0.1% in the Eurozone and by 0.5% in the EU27, after +4.3% and +2.3% respectively in the previous month.
In terms of the annual comparison, production in construction fell in 11 of the member states with data available for May and rose in three. The largest decreases were registered in Poland (-28.6%), the Czech Republic (-15.5%), Portugal (-12.9%) and Slovakia(-12.1%), and the largest increases were in Hungary (+11.1%), Spain (+8.2%) and Sweden(+7.9%).
Building construction decreased by 5.2% in the EA17 and by 4.7% in the EU27, after -6.4% and -5.0% respectively in April. Civil engineering fell by 5.8% in the Eurozone and by 6.8% in the EU27, after -8.1% and -8.6% respectively in the previous month.
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