Portugal stood out in October as the country with the largest increase in construction sector production among EU Member States, recording a year-on-year growth of 6.9%. This increase contrasts significantly with the 0.2% growth in the Eurozone and the 0.8% decrease in the EU, according to preliminary estimates released by Eurostat this Wednesday. This national performance can be partially attributed to the progress of works associated with the Recovery and Resilience Plan (RRP).

In an annual analysis, the indicator measuring the evolution of production volume in the sector, which includes building construction, civil engineering, and specialized construction activities, shows that the largest increases were recorded in Portugal (+6.9%), Spain (+6.3%), and Bulgaria (+6.2%). On the other hand, the biggest declines were observed in Romania (-14.5%), Slovenia (-13.4%), and Poland (-11.4%).

In the Eurozone, construction sector production rose 3% in civil engineering, 0.6% in building construction, and fell 0.9% in specialized construction activities, year-on-year. In the EU, increases were 1.3% in civil engineering, while building construction fell 0.5% and specialized activities declined 1.2%.

Compared to the previous month, construction production grew by 1% in the Eurozone and 0.7% in the EU in October. Portugal recorded the third-largest monthly increase, with a rise of 4.6%, alongside Hungary. The highest positive monthly variations were observed in Slovakia (+7.9%) and Austria (+6.5%), while the largest declines occurred in Romania (-8.3%) and Poland (-2.7%).