The prices for concrete, fuel, and gypsum products saw a clear increase in the first month of this year, even as costs for other materials were on the downside, according to a new analysis.
Crunching the latest government data, the Washington-based Associated General Contractors of America documents declines in two materials that have experienced uneven price rides in the last several years: lumber and steel.
The AGC analysis shows that the price of cement was up by a significant 17.6% between January of 2022 and last month, while concrete products experienced a 14.8% increase during that same period of time.
Diesel fuel prices registered a 22.8% gain over the last year, with gypsum building materials up by 11.1%.
Also on the increase: asphalt felts and coatings, by 7.4%; and flat glass, which saw an 8.7% jump.
But after a historic increase in 2021 and 2022 due to a production shortage, lumber and plywood product prices are off by a substantial 30.8%. During the same January 2022 to January 2023 period, the prices for steel mill products fell by 30.1%, with steel pipe and tubing prices off by 10.0%.
Copper and brass mill shapes saw a price decline of 4.5%; with aluminum mill shapes down by 6.1%.
Providing an overview of the price trends, Ken Simonson, chief economist with the AGC, noted that even though “producer price indexes for construction inputs moderated over the past year,” many items nonetheless were on the up side last month.
Added Simonson: “With demand shifting among project types, prices for many inputs are likely to diverge further in 2023.”
A press release from the AGC noted an ongoing uncertainty regarding what materials are qualified to be used on infrastructure projects funded by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
That uncertainty will likely make it harder for contractors to “find materials to complete infrastructure projects, raise the cost of those materials, and lead to delays in completing the work,” the AGC statement continued.
By Garry Boulard
