Construction material prices up 10-25% in H1

The price of basic construction materials, such as steel-concrete, cement and bricks, has gone up heavily in the first half of the year, with the increases standing at 10 to 25%, according to the Association of Construction Companies. “We have conducted a study based on data from our construction material suppliers, which showed that the price of construction materials has seen a strong growth. The growth was prompted by the increase in the volume of investments on the real estate market, as well as by the speculations on the market,” Adriana Iftime, general manager of the Association of Construction Companies, told ZF. The biggest increase was seen by steel-concrete, the price of which has risen 25%. The prices of cement and bricks also saw rises, of 16% and 10% respectively. “Until May this year, we maintained the prices of products in euros, and the strong appreciation of the national currency led to a negative result as compared with what we had estimated at the beginning of the year. We have therefore increased prices by about 10%, a decision prompted among other things by the fact that we cannot meet the demand on the market,” said Daniel Catanas, general manager of Wienerberger Sisteme de Caramizi (Wienerberger Brick Systems), the biggest brick producer on the Romanian market.