Romania's construction works' contraction propped by public contracts in Q3

The construction works volume in Romania edged up by another 2.2% q/q in seasonally adjusted terms after the 13.5% q/q advance in Q2, recovering part of the steep 21% q/q contraction in Q1, according to data published by the statistics office INS.

However, constructors' activity in Q3 still lagged 2.2% y/y behind the volume (in comparable terms) seen in the same quarter of last year. This sector's weak performance must have contributed to the disappointing 1.1% y/y GDP growth estimated under the flash report by the statistics office.

The residential and non-residential building segments of the markets keep losing ground. The residential segment plunged the most, by 26% y/y and 19.6% q/q in Q3.

The non-residential buildings segment posted a more moderate decline, propped possibly by the logistics and industrial sub-segment: it dropped by 7.5% y/y and 7.3% q/q in Q3.

The volume of construction works under civil engineering projects, mostly contracted by the state in the infrastructure sector, increased by 9.5% y/y and 4.8% q/q and contributed to propping the decline of the overall construction market.

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