German Construction Sector Continues To Shrink

(RTTNews) - Germany's construction sector contracted in September as growth in the civil engineering being more than offset by sustained downturns in housing and commercial activity, survey data from S&P Global showed Monday.

The HCOB construction Purchasing Managers' Index rose moderately to 46.2 in September from 46.0 in August. However, the index score of below 50.0 no-change threshold signaled a sustained downturn in overall building activity.

The housing sector was the primary driver of this decline, recording the sharpest fall in three months. Work on commercial building projects decreased, while the civil engineering registered a rise for the third time in the last four months.

"The construction sector remains in recession," Hamburg Commercial Bank Chief Economist Cyrus de la Rubia said.

"Although short-term financing costs have fallen in recent years as a result of the ECB's interest rate cuts, long-term yields, which are based on long-term German government bonds, remain relatively high. Overall, the environment for the construction sector remains difficult," said de la Rubia.