According to the Economic and Steel Market Outlook 2026-2027/Q1 2026 Report from the Economic Committee of the European Steel Association (EUROFER), in the third quarter of 2025, construction output in the EU increased by 1.6 percent year on year, after a 0.6 percent increase in the previous quarter.
Residential investments, which are highly sensitive to interest rates, increased slightly by 0.3 percent after a nearly three-year-long downtrend, while civil construction investments posted a 2.7 percent increase.
According to EUROFER, construction confidence has remained in negative territory since March 2022, though the latest figures from January 2025 indicate a gradual improvement in sentiment. Following a relatively resilient performance in 2023, with growth of 1.4 percent despite uneven trends across EU member states, the sector declined by 1.6 percent in 2024.
Looking ahead, growth is expected to remain modest in 2025 at 0.7 percent, largely due to subdued housing demand in the first half of the year. However, a stronger recovery is projected for 2026 (2.4 percent) and 2027 (2.8 percent), supported by monetary policy easing and increased government backing for the construction sector across the EU.