On the relevance and perspectives of commercial construction in the EU

This paper presents the current state of construction investments in the European Union and illustrates its development pre-, during and post- the recent economic and financial crisis. Construction investments were affected strongly by the economic turbulences caused by the crisis. In several EU member states construction investments are not yet back to pre-crisis levels. We further illustrate the importance of construction investments for the EU's gross fixed capital formation and in terms of gross domestic product. The analysis then presents potential challenges for the EU's construction sector. Based on the development of office employment in the past, and its current state, it is likely that demand for commercial construc-tion in the form of office buildings will increase in the future. In addition, infrastructure in-vestments must increase in order to meet the current and future needs.