EU Construction Industry Eyes Recovery Despite Economic Challenges
Feb 7, 2025

EU Construction Industry Eyes Recovery Despite Economic Challenges

The European Union's construction sector remains under strain, but signs of recovery are anticipated in the coming years. According to the European steel association EUROFER, growth of 1.1% is expected in 2024 after three consecutive years of decline. For more details, visit the source.

In the third quarter of 2024, the construction industry saw a decline of 2.2%, marking the third consecutive quarterly downturn. Challenges such as high interest rates, increasing material costs, labor shortages, and overall economic uncertainty have contributed heavily to this trend. Although the European Central Bank (ECB) reduced its key policy rate four times in 2024, the positive impact of these cuts is expected to manifest with a delay of several quarters.

According to IndexBox, investment in residential construction continued to decline for the eighth consecutive quarter in 2024, dropping by 3.7% in the third quarter. This reflects a weakened demand for housing attributed to high mortgage rates. Meanwhile, commercial construction also remains under pressure due to persistent business environment uncertainties.

Nonetheless, public construction, particularly infrastructure projects, is witnessing more stable progress, bolstered by EU funding. Initiatives such as NextGenerationEU are central to this investment, although their influence appears to be slowly diminishing.

Looking forward, the construction sector is anticipated to gain momentum in 2025. The expected reduction in interest rates should, eventually, spark a resurgence in housing demand. Additionally, continuous infrastructure projects are likely to further support the sector. EUROFER forecasts a growth of 1.1% for the construction industry in 2025, with potential acceleration to 1.8% in 2026.

On the steel front, EUROFER recently revised its forecast for apparent steel consumption in the EU for 2025, reducing expected growth to +2.2% from a previous +3.8%, reflecting the sector's systemic issues amid global economic instability, high energy costs, and increasing imports. However, steel production in the European Union recorded a rise of 2.6% in 2024 compared to 2023, amounting to 129.5 million tons, as global steel production for the year slightly declined by 0.9%, totaling 1.84 billion tons.

Source: IndexBox Market Intelligence Platform

  1. 1. INTRODUCTION

    Making Data-Driven Decisions to Grow Your Business

    1. REPORT DESCRIPTION
    2. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY AND THE AI PLATFORM
    3. DATA-DRIVEN DECISIONS FOR YOUR BUSINESS
    4. GLOSSARY AND SPECIFIC TERMS
  2. 2. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

    A Quick Overview of Market Performance

    1. KEY FINDINGS
    2. MARKET TRENDS This Chapter is Available Only for the Professional EditionPRO
  3. 3. MARKET OVERVIEW

    Understanding the Current State of The Market and its Prospects

    1. MARKET SIZE: HISTORICAL DATA (2012–2024) AND FORECAST (2025–2035)
    2. CONSUMPTION BY COUNTRY: HISTORICAL DATA (2012–2024) AND FORECAST (2025–2035)
    3. MARKET FORECAST TO 2035
  4. 4. MOST PROMISING PRODUCTS FOR DIVERSIFICATION

    Finding New Products to Diversify Your Business

    1. TOP PRODUCTS TO DIVERSIFY YOUR BUSINESS
    2. BEST-SELLING PRODUCTS
    3. MOST CONSUMED PRODUCTS
    4. MOST TRADED PRODUCTS
    5. MOST PROFITABLE PRODUCTS FOR EXPORT
  5. 5. MOST PROMISING SUPPLYING COUNTRIES

    Choosing the Best Countries to Establish Your Sustainable Supply Chain

    1. TOP COUNTRIES TO SOURCE YOUR PRODUCT
    2. TOP PRODUCING COUNTRIES
    3. TOP EXPORTING COUNTRIES
    4. LOW-COST EXPORTING COUNTRIES
  6. 6. MOST PROMISING OVERSEAS MARKETS

    Choosing the Best Countries to Boost Your Export

    1. TOP OVERSEAS MARKETS FOR EXPORTING YOUR PRODUCT
    2. TOP CONSUMING MARKETS
    3. UNSATURATED MARKETS
    4. TOP IMPORTING MARKETS
    5. MOST PROFITABLE MARKETS
  7. 7. PRODUCTION

    The Latest Trends and Insights into The Industry

    1. PRODUCTION VOLUME AND VALUE: HISTORICAL DATA (2012–2024) AND FORECAST (2025–2035)
    2. PRODUCTION BY COUNTRY: HISTORICAL DATA (2012–2024) AND FORECAST (2025–2035)
  8. 8. IMPORTS

    The Largest Import Supplying Countries

    1. IMPORTS: HISTORICAL DATA (2012–2024) AND FORECAST (2025–2035)
    2. IMPORTS BY COUNTRY: HISTORICAL DATA (2012–2024) AND FORECAST (2025–2035)
    3. IMPORT PRICES BY COUNTRY: HISTORICAL DATA (2012–2024) AND FORECAST (2025–2035)
  9. 9. EXPORTS

    The Largest Destinations for Exports

    1. EXPORTS: HISTORICAL DATA (2012–2024) AND FORECAST (2025–2035)
    2. EXPORTS BY COUNTRY: HISTORICAL DATA (2012–2024) AND FORECAST (2025–2035)
    3. EXPORT PRICES BY COUNTRY: HISTORICAL DATA (2012–2024) AND FORECAST (2025–2035)
  10. 10. PROFILES OF MAJOR PRODUCERS

    The Largest Producers on The Market and Their Profiles

  11. 11. COUNTRY PROFILES

    The Largest Markets And Their Profiles

    This Chapter is Available Only for the Professional Edition PRO
    • United States
    • China
    • Japan
    • Germany
    • United Kingdom
    • France
    • Brazil
    • Italy
    • Russian Federation
    • India
    • Canada
    • Australia
    • Republic of Korea
    • Spain
    • Mexico
    • Indonesia
    • Netherlands
    • Turkey
    • Saudi Arabia
    • Switzerland
    • Sweden
    • Nigeria
    • Poland
    • Belgium
    • Argentina
    • Norway
    • Austria
    • Thailand
    • United Arab Emirates
    • Colombia
    • Denmark
    • South Africa
    • Malaysia
    • Israel
    • Singapore
    • Egypt
    • Philippines
    • Finland
    • Chile
    • Ireland
    • Pakistan
    • Greece
    • Portugal
    • Kazakhstan
    • Algeria
    • Czech Republic
    • Qatar
    • Peru
    • Romania
    • Vietnam
  12. LIST OF TABLES

    1. Key Findings In 2024
    2. Market Volume, In Physical Terms: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    3. Market Value: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    4. Per Capita Consumption, by Country, 2022–2024
    5. Production, In Physical Terms, By Country: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    6. Imports, In Physical Terms, By Country: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    7. Imports, In Value Terms, By Country: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    8. Import Prices, By Country: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    9. Exports, In Physical Terms, By Country: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    10. Exports, In Value Terms, By Country: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    11. Export Prices, By Country: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
  13. LIST OF FIGURES

    1. Market Volume, In Physical Terms: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    2. Market Value: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    3. Consumption, by Country, 2024
    4. Market Volume Forecast to 2035
    5. Market Value Forecast to 2035
    6. Market Size and Growth, By Product
    7. Average Per Capita Consumption, By Product
    8. Exports and Growth, By Product
    9. Export Prices and Growth, By Product
    10. Production Volume and Growth
    11. Exports and Growth
    12. Export Prices and Growth
    13. Market Size and Growth
    14. Per Capita Consumption
    15. Imports and Growth
    16. Import Prices
    17. Production, In Physical Terms: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    18. Production, In Value Terms: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    19. Production, by Country, 2024
    20. Production, In Physical Terms, by Country: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    21. Imports, In Physical Terms: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    22. Imports, In Value Terms: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    23. Imports, In Physical Terms, By Country, 2024
    24. Imports, In Physical Terms, By Country: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    25. Imports, In Value Terms, By Country: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    26. Import Prices, By Country: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    27. Exports, In Physical Terms: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    28. Exports, In Value Terms: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    29. Exports, In Physical Terms, By Country, 2024
    30. Exports, In Physical Terms, By Country: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    31. Exports, In Value Terms, By Country: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)
    32. Export Prices, By Country: Historical Data (2012–2024) and Forecast (2025–2035)

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