Latest News Stream - Construction Output

Construction output in the Czech Republic increased by 1.6% year-on-year in September 2026, rebounding from a 1.4% decline in August. Building construction grew by 0.8%, slowing significantly from the 5.9% increase recorded in the previous month. Meanwhile, civil engineering output rose by 2.9%, recovering from a 12.3% contraction in August. A total of 5,580 building permits were issued in September, down from 5,684 in August and representing a 0.5% decrease year-on-year. The total floor area of newly permitted buildings also expanded by 8.1%. Meanwhile, housing construction showed a mixed performance, with 3,511 dwellings started, down 1.2% compared with the same month a year earlier, while completed dwellings declined by 1.0% to 2,976. On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, construction output fell by 0.4% in September, following a 0.1% decrease in August.

Infrastructure output in India surged 7.9% from the previous year in September of 2026, the strongest pace of increase since November 2023, following an upwardly revised 5.9% gain in the prior month. Growth was driven by a rebound in the output of coal, rising 10.7% following a 3.8% decline, while production grew significantly further of iron ores (18.4% vs 5.5%) and steel (4.9% vs 3.5%). Stronger output growth of refined products to 10.3% from 5.6% also contributed. However, production of other energy products continued to decline, but at a slower pace, including crude oil (-1.4% vs -3.6%) and natural gas (-4.6% vs -4.9%), and also fertilizers (-11.7% vs -12.4%).

Eurozone construction output rose by 1.4% year-on-year in August 2026, marking its strongest growth since October 2025 and rebounding from an upwardly revised 1.7% decline in July. Specialised construction activities increased by 3.1%, rebounding following a 1.2% decline, while the pace of decline eased in the construction of buildings to 3.7% from 6.5%. Meanwhile, civil engineering remained flat after edging up 0.2% in the prior month. Construction activity rose most in Germany, rising sharply by 10.5% following a 1.1% increase. In contrast, output continued to decline in Spain (-4.3% vs. -10.6%), Italy (-2.2% vs. -0.1%) and France (-7.8% vs. -5.0%). On a monthly basis, eurozone construction output rose by 1.8%, accelerating from 0.2% in July. Across the EU, output increased by 2.6%, recovering from a 1.6% decline in the previous month.

Italy’s construction output fell 2.2% year-on-year on a calendar-adjusted basis in August 2026, following a revised 0.1% decline in the previous month and marking the sharpest contraction since December 2024. On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, construction output decreased by 2.9%, extending the decline to three consecutive months and marking the steepest drop since December 2024. On average, construction production fell 3.2% in the June-to-August period from the previous three-month period. In the first eight months of 2026, calendar-adjusted construction output rose 1.2%, while the unadjusted index increased 2.3%.

UK construction output fell 1.8% year-on-year in August 2026, following a downwardly revised 1.9% decline in the prior month, marking a tenth consecutive month of contraction. The pace of decline was the slowest since April but steeper than market expectations of a 1.6% drop. New work contracted for an eleventh straight month (-5.8% vs -4.5%) in July, while growth in repair and maintenance accelerated sharply (3.6% vs 1.6%). On a monthly basis, output edged down 0.2%, easing from a 0.5% fall in July and signaling the smallest decrease in four months. Repair and maintenance continued to expand, rising 0.8%, while new work fell 0.7%, extending its losing streak to five months. Over the three months to August, construction output declined 1.0%, marking a second consecutive period of contraction. Both new work and repair and maintenance fell, by 1.4% and 0.3%, respectively, indicating broad-based weakness in the sector over the period.

Slovakia’s construction output fell by 4.8% year-on-year in August 2026, reversing a 2.3% increase in the previous month. This marked the second annual decline this year, after January, and the steepest drop since September 2024. The result for the second month of the summer holiday period reflected a decline in domestic construction (-3.0% vs 4.7% in July), with decreases in the dominant new construction activity (-0.7% vs 4.9%), repair and maintenance of buildings (-6.4% vs 5.0%), and civil engineering works (-10.3% vs 1.1%). At the same time, growth in building construction slowed sharply to 0.6% from 6.5%. Construction activity abroad also declined further, falling by 16.0%, the largest decrease since January, after a 13.5% drop in July. On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, construction output dropped by 4.9%. In the first eight months of 2026, construction activity was 6.3% higher than in the same period last year.

Hungary’s construction output jumped 21.9% year-on-year in August 2026, rebounding sharply from a 12.2% decline in the previous month. The latest figure marked the largest increase since February 2022, as both major construction groups recorded stronger activity. Civil engineering output surged 102.4%, reversing a 14.0% plunge, driven largely by a 183.6% increase in output in the relevant segment, a 142% jump in road and railway construction, and a 319.9% rise in utility projects. Meanwhile, building construction declined at a softer pace, falling 9.6% compared with a 10.7% drop in July. On a seasonally and working-day-adjusted monthly basis, construction output increased 14.0% in August, following a 4.6% decline in the previous month. In the January–August period, total construction output edged up 0.1% compared with the same period a year earlier.

Construction output in Bulgaria rose 4.2% year-on-year in August 2026, following a 4.9% gain in the previous month. Growth moderated in building construction (7.4% vs 9.5% in July) and civil engineering (4.2% vs 5.0%). In contrast, specialized construction activities returned to growth (0.8% vs -0.2%). On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, construction output rose 0.8%, rebounding from a 0.6% decline in July. The increase was driven by gains in specialized construction activities (2.4% vs -0.8%) and civil engineering (0.5% vs -0.5%), which more than offset a 0.4% fall in building construction, the same pace as in July.

Construction output in the Czech Republic fell 1.4% year-on-year in August 2026, reversing a 1.8% increase in the previous month. Building construction rose 5.9% year-on-year, accelerating from 4.9% growth in July, while civil engineering declined further, falling 12.3% after a 3.4% drop. A total of 5,684 building permits were granted, up 1.4% from a year earlier, while the floor area of newly permitted buildings increased 20.2% year-on-year. Meanwhile, construction started on 3,922 dwellings, climbed 42.3% year-on-year, driven by increases in both family houses and multi-dwelling buildings. Meanwhile, 2,852 dwellings were completed, down 3.0% year-on-year. On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, construction output fell 0.1% in August, reversing a 0.4% increase in July.

Eurozone construction output dropped by 2% year-on-year in July 2026, the steepest decline since February, following an upwardly revised 1.4% decrease in June. Building activity continued to contract (-6.4% vs -7.4% in June), while specialised construction activities also remained under pressure (-1.6% vs -0.4%). Meanwhile, civil engineering rose by 0.6%, after being flat in the previous month. Among major economies, output fell in Spain (-9.7%), France (-5%) and Italy (-1.2%), but increased in Germany (1%). On a monthly basis, construction output was flat, after an upwardly revised 1.5% slump in June. In the broader European Union, construction activity shrank by 1.8% on a yearly basis and fell by 0.3% from the previous month.

Italy’s construction output fell 1.2% year-on-year in July 2026, following a 0.6% increase in the previous month and marking the first contraction in six months and the lowest reading since December 2024. On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, construction output declined by 1.4%, easing from a 2.1% drop in June. On average, construction production decreased 0.8% in the May-to-July period from the previous three-month period. In the first seven months of 2026, calendar-adjusted construction output rose 1.3%.

Construction output in Greece increased by 7.1% year-on-year in the second quarter of 2026, slowing from 16.4% growth in the previous quarter. The moderation was mainly driven by civil engineering, which declined 10.7% after expanding 6.8% in Q1. Meanwhile, activity in residential and non-residential building construction grew 17.6%, easing slightly from 18.9%, while specialised construction activities increased 16.1%, slowing from 22.3%. On a quarterly basis, construction output rose by 30.6% in the second quarter, sharply reversing from a 44.6% decline in the preceding period.

Hungary’s construction output plunged by 12.2% year-on-year in July 2026, following a 1.2% decline in the previous month. This marked the third consecutive month of contraction and the sharpest decline since January, as both major construction groups recorded weaker activity. Building construction fell further by 10.7%, compared with a 5.5% decline in June. Meanwhile, civil engineering output dropped 14.0%, reversing a 5.6% increase in the previous month. The decline was largely driven by a 26.2% reduction in road and railway construction and a 52.2% fall in utility projects, which had respective negative contributions of 14.5 and 19.5 percentage points to the division’s overall performance. On a seasonally and working-day adjusted monthly basis, construction activity decreased by 4.6%, following a downwardly revised 4.0% decline in the preceding month. In the January–July period, total construction output fell by 2.7% compared with the same period a year earlier.

UK construction output fell 2.5% year-on-year in July 2026, accelerating from a 2.3% decline in the previous month and marking the ninth consecutive month of contraction. It was also the steepest decline since December 2025, underperforming market estimates of a 2.3% fall. New work slipped for a tenth straight month (-5.1% vs -5.9% in June), while growth in repair and maintenance eased to a seven-month low (1.0% vs 2.8%). On a monthly basis, construction activity edged up 0.1%, reversing a 0.1% decline in June and signaling the first increase in four months. Repair and maintenance activity rose 0.8%, while new work fell 0.4% for a fourth consecutive month. Over the three months to July, output declined 0.5%, ending four consecutive periods of growth, as both new work and repair and maintenance fell 0.4% and 0.7%, respectively.

Construction output in Bulgaria rose 4.9% year-on-year in July 2026, following an upwardly revised 5.6% gain in the previous month. Growth moderated across most segments, notably in building construction (9.5% vs 10.8% in June) and specialized construction activities (-0.2% vs 0.7%). In contrast, civil engineering growth accelerated to 5.0% from 4.4% in the previous. On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, construction output declined 0.6% from 1.7% rise in the previous month, with declines across all segments. The monthly contraction was driven by declines in building construction (-0.4% vs 1.5%), civil engineering (-0.5% vs 0.0%), and specialized construction activities (-0.8% vs 3.1%).

Slovakia’s construction output rose by 2.3% year-on-year in July 2026, accelerating from a five-month low of a 1.0% increase in the previous month. While it remained the second-slowest growth rate recorded this year, construction output reached almost EUR 805 million, exceeding EUR 800 million for the first time this year, largely driven by stronger domestic activity (4.7% vs 1.1% in June), with increased output for new construction (4.9% vs 2.8%) and repair and maintenance work (5.0% vs -1.6%). By type of construction, building activity increased 6.5% (vs 2.7%), while civil engineering output rose 1.1% (-1.9%). Meanwhile, construction output abroad fell 13.5% (vs -0.1%), marking the third-largest decline this year and significantly limiting the overall growth in the sector. On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, construction output increased 1.9% in July. In the first seven months of 2026, construction activity increased 8.2% compared with the same period a year earlier.

Construction output in the Czech Republic rose 1.8% year-on-year in July 2026, accelerating from a downwardly revised 0.5% increase in the previous month. Building construction output increased 4.9% year-on-year, while civil engineering fell 3.4%. A total of 5,622 building permits were granted, up 4.0% year-on-year, while the floor area of newly permitted buildings decreased 16.9% year-on-year, mainly due to a decline in non-residential buildings, following large production and storage areas permitted last year. Meanwhile, construction of 2,935 dwellings started, up 11.7% from a year earlier, while the number of dwellings completed climbed 46.1% year-on-year to 3,328, both driven by multi-dwelling buildings in July. On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, construction output edged up 0.4% in July, rebounding from a 0.3% decline in the previous month.

Total construction work in Australia declined 2.1% quarter-on-quarter to AUD 82,515.9 million in Q2 2026, reversing an upwardly revised 4.3% expansion in the previous quarter and defying market expectations for a 0.5% increase. It marked the first contraction since Q3 2025, driven largely by a sharp downturn in engineering work, which fell 6.0% after surging 7.4% in Q1, to AUD 36,672.2 million. Meanwhile, building construction growth eased to 1.3% from 1.7%, reaching AUD 45,843.7 million. Non-residential building slowed sharply, rising just 0.5% after a 3.4% gain in the prior quarter, although residential construction accelerated to 1.7% from 0.6%. Regionally, activity fell sharply in Western Australia (-19.7%), followed by Tasmania (-9.5%) and the Australian Capital Territory (-8.8%). In contrast, construction output expanded in Victoria (5.8%), Northern Territory (2.7%), South Australia (1.6%), New South Wales (1.4%), and Queensland (1.1%).

Infrastructure output in India rose by 5.4% from the previous year in July of 2026, extending the upwardly revised, ten-month high of 6% in the previous month. The result extended the period of traction from the more fragile growth rates in the second quarter after the war in Iran triggered a surge in energy prices and costs that Indian manufacturers face. Output accelerated for iron ore (29.5% vs 44.5% in June), cement (13.1% vs 9.9%), coal (7.6% vs 1.4%), and rebounded for refinery products (2.7% vs -4%) as producers were likely able to source greater crude oil feedstock. On the other hand, output fell for fertilizers (-8% vs -3.3%) and crude oil (-3.7% vs -4.8%).