Press Release 15/06/2009

CONSTRUCTION INDEX (ICC) 1ST QUARTER 2009

The construction sector in the Basque Country fell by 9.1% in the first quarter of 2009

Building was down by 14.8%, while Civil Works grew by 3.1%

Construction in the Basque Country registered a year-on-year nominal downturn of 9.1% in the first quarter of 2009, in homogeneous terms of the working calendar, according to EUSTAT data.

Once corrected for seasonal factors, the construction sector fell by 4.5% in this first quarter of 2009 compared to the fourth quarter of 2008.

Graph 1: Year-on-year quarterly growth of the corrected Construction Index of the Basque Country Total, Building and Civil Works. (%)

Source: EUSTAT

The drop in the construction sector, in the first quarter of 2009, was offset by the positive performance of the Civil Works sub-sector, which registered a year-on-year rise of 3.1%, compared to a 14.8% fall posted by Building.

In quarter-on-quarter terms, if the activity of the sector in the first quarter of 2009 is compared to the previous quarter, both Building and Civil Works sub-sectors performed negatively, by 1.4% in the case of Civil Works and 6.2% in the case of the Building sub-sector..

In the fourth quarter of 2009, employment in the construction sector registered a downturn of 3.6% compared to the fourth quarter of 2008.



Table 1: Construction Index, Basque Country 1st quarter 2009. Variation Rates (%).

(1) Year on year variation rate of the accumulated period from the first quarter to the last quarter of year t compared to the same period of the year t-1

Source: EUSTAT

For further information:

Basque Statistics Office C/ Donostia-San Sebastián, 1 01010 Vitoria-Gasteiz Tlf:+34-945-01 75 00 Fax:+34-945-01 75 01 E-mail: eustat@eustat.es Contact: Gerardo Pérez Aja Tel:+34-945-01 75 06 Fax:+34-945-01 75 01 Online press releases: www.eustat.es Databank: www.eustat.eus/bancopx/english/indice.aspx