Construction material prices climbed 0.2% in September and are up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis, according to Associated Builders and Contractors. Prices in September were 43.3% higher than in February 2020.
Nonresidential construction material prices rose 0.2% from August to September and increased 3.8% compared with one year ago. Softwood lumber prices are down 1.4% year over year and 4.2% from August to September. Iron and steel prices are up 9% year over year and down 1% for the month. Natural gas fell 8.7% from August to September and is up 25.1% year over year. Crude petroleum fell 1.7% for the month and is down 4.5% year over year.
“Construction input prices rose for the fifth straight month in September,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “While that represents the longest streak of monthly increases since the first half of 2022, those increases are relatively modest. Materials prices have risen at a 3.2% annualized rate since April, a rate that is faster than ideal but nowhere near the escalation that occurred in 2021 and 2022.
“Unfortunately, it’s unclear how higher tariffs on key materials like iron and steel and aluminum and copper will affect prices over the next several months, and it’s noteworthy that commodities related to those materials have exhibited significant year-over-year price increases,” Basu continued. “Despite the prospect of ongoing materials price escalation, contractors remain cautiously upbeat about their profit margins and sales over the next six months, according to ABC’s Construction Confidence Index.”
