Construction output in the eurozone contracted in December, led by falls in Germany and Spain, according to the Eurostat, the European Union's statistical office.

Production in construction fell by 0.8 per cent  month-on-month at the end of last year. Building production dropped by one per cent on the month while that of civil engineering rose by 1.7 per cent.

Construction output in Germany came off by 2.9 per cent when compared to November's level and by another one per cent in Spain.

In France output increased by 0.4 per cent and in Italy by  2.3 per cent

In the fourth quarter of 2014 construction output was down by 0.3 per cent compared to the previous three months.