Overall construction materials prices remained flat in May but are up 1.6% year over year according to the June 13 Producer Price Index release supplied by the U.S. Dept. of Labor. Nonresidential construction materials prices fell 0.2% for the month but are 1.3% higher than at the same time one year ago.
“With construction spending expanding only in fits and starts and given recent evidence of disappointing global economic performance, it comes as little surprise that most construction materials prices are not rising,” said Associated Builders and Contractors Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “For the better part of two years, materials prices have been remarkably stable, which fits neatly into the context of soft expansions in both domestic and global construction volume.”