Construction output turns higher in European Union

BRUSSELS, Feb. 19 (UPI) -- Construction in the European Union ended a three-month slide in December, the region's data agency Eurostat said Wednesday.

The statistics agency for the European Commission said construction output rose 0.9 percent from November in the 18-nation eurozone, the nations that use the euro, and 1 percent in the 28-member European Union.

In the eurozone currency region, production in December was down 0.2 percent from December 2012. In the larger EU, production rose 0.8 percent for the same month of 2012.

With data unavailable from 12 states, the sharpest gain was posted by France at 4.5 percent. The largest decline was a 17.2 percent drop month-to-month in Slovenia.