Cost of building materials spike 17%

The cost of building materials in Cyprus continues to rise, while the Central Bank warned the war in Ukraine will only make things worse for the construction industry.

According to data from the Cyprus Statistical Service, the Price Index of Construction Materials, recorded a significant increase of 17.68% in the first quarter of the year. Increases were recorded across the board, from steel, cement, sand, stone aggregates and wood-based materials have seen big price increases of 19.08% in March from 2021.

There were large price increases for metals, wood products, insulation, chemicals, and plastics, and electromechanical items.

By main commodity category, increases were recorded in metallic products (31.60%), products of wood, insulation materials, chemicals, and plastics (20.87%), electromechanical products (14.79%), minerals (7.38%) and mineral products (6.68%).

Cyprus Central Bank said the war in Ukraine and supply chain problems affecting international trade are expected to push real estate construction costs even higher, which could also negatively affect demand.

According to the Central Bank of Cyprus (CBC), the annual cost of building materials has gone up by 17.3% in March compared to last year.

This will also affect housing and business loans related to the construction industry.

CBC said property prices in Cyprus have not shown the same upward trends observed in other Eurozone countries, except for luxury apartments in Limassol.