According to the report from IHS Markit, January data painted a brighter picture of the eurozone construction sector, with a quicker rise in new work intakes underpinning faster increases in activity, input buying and employment. Moreover, the mood among builders improved from December, with firms at their most upbeat since mid2019. Of the euro area's three largest economies, Germany was the strongest link as trends for construction output, home building, new orders, employment and input buying were all better than the trends in France and Italy.

The IHS Markit Eurozone Construction PMI rose from 51.3 in December to 51.9 in January, to signal the strongest rate of expansion in output since April 2019. Growth of residential and commercial work accelerated to nine- and four-month highs respectively, but civil engineering activity declined further. Eurozone builders recorded a fourth successive rise in new work, with the pace of growth the fastest in almost one year.

Eurozone builders were upbeat towards growth prospects, following a neutral outlook at the end of 2019. The degree of optimism was strong by historical standards and was at a six-month high.