Construction industry crisis in Europe

Last year the European construction industry recorded a decline of approx. 2.5 per cent. The 19 Euroconstruct member institutes are reckoning with an even more dramatic decline of approx. 4.5 per cent for 2009. The experts expect stagnation to follow in the coming year – with demand not picking up again until 2011. The poor level of demand in the residential building sector is above all responsible for the construction industry crisis in Europe. Following an already weak year in 2008 (- 7 per cent), this sector will lose still more impetus this year, resulting in a further 7 per cent decline. Over the next few years a positive trend is to be expected only in the four east European countries represented in the Euroconstruct group (Poland, Czechia, Slovakia and Hungary). The experts believe that building activity there will see an average annual increase of about 8.5 per cent up to 2011.