The value of orders received by Germany's building industry rose 14.9% year-on-year, on a price-adjusted basis, in March, the Federal Statistical Office said Tuesday.
The significant increase was largely due to big orders, the Wiesbaden-based agency said. Meanwhile, total turnover in the industry fell 9.3% year-on-year in March to nearly EUR 5.3 billion. The number of persons employed in the building industry amounted to 680,000 at the end of March. The figure reflected a 2% or 14, 000 decline from last year.
The building industry in Germany consists of building construction and civil and underground engineering enterprises. Building construction registered a 14.3% growth in demand, while in civil and underground engineering, bookings increased 15.6%.
During the first quarter, the value of construction industry orders grew 10% from a year ago. However, turnover dropped 17.1% year-on-year to around EUR 11.2 billion. The number of persons employed in the sector also declined 0.5% to 673,000.
The German economy expanded 0.2% in the first quarter, underpinned by government spending and exports, detailed data from the statistical agency showed last week. The economy managed to grow despite a slump in the construction sector caused by the harsh winter. Output in the construction sector dropped 3.7% annually in the first quarter. A Markit Economics survey showed that the construction sector expanded in April for the first time in 26 months due to better weather conditions.
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May 01, 2026 15:54 ET Central banks dominated the economics news flow this week with almost all major ones announcing their latest policy decisions and many boosted expectations for a rate hike in June. In other news, several countries released the preliminary data for first quarter economic growth. In the U.S., comments by Fed Chair Jerome Powell were also in focus as his term ends this month.