The year-on-year prices for all construction materials rose by 21.81 per cent from May 2021 to May 2022, according to the Cyprus Statistical Service; a small decline from the 24.54 per cent increase recorded in April.
The price increases make it harder for the construction and real estate sectors to recover from the fallout from the Covid-19 pandemic, the scrapping of the disgraced citizenship for investment scheme and the continuing war in Ukraine.
Compared to May 2021, the Cyprus Statistical Service reports price rises in metallic products (36.33%), products of wood, insulation materials, chemicals and plastics (21.23%), electromechanical products (14.08%), mineral products (10.24%) and minerals (9.27%).
In the metallic products category, Cystat reports that building iron suffered the largest increase, with prices rising by 57.93% year-on-year, while the price of structural grid has risen by 49.52% and iron rails by 48.42%. (One of Europe’s biggest iron and steel works at Azovstal in Ukraine, which produced about 4.3 million tons of steel annually has been destroyed by Russian invasion forces.)
In the chemicals and plastics category, the price of PVC doors and windows has risen by 50.37% and plastic pipes and tubes by 31.17%.
The only item that has fallen in price is electrical lamps; down by 5.91%.
The world-wide shortage of construction materials is expected to worsen for many months to come, with price rises exacerbated by rising energy costs and inflation.
Further reading
Prices Index of Construction Materials – May 2022
