In its thirteenth annual survey of international construction costs conducted exclusively for ENR, the London-based international project and cost management firm reports that construction inflation increased on average 5.2% in 23 nations in Europe, Asia and the Middle East. This is up from a 3% rate reported for the same group of countries in 2003 and 2.3% in 2002. In the U.S., G&Ts survey shows construction costs in New York City climbing from 2.4% in 2004 to 12% this year. In Western Europe, construction inflation rose from 2.5 to 3.7% during the same period.
Contractors in Australia and New Zealand also struggled with rising material costs in 2004. G&T reports that construction costs in New Zealand jumped 14% this year, after averaging annual increases of less than 2% for the previous seven years. In Australia, construction inflation rose from 4% in 2003 to 7% this year, according to G&T.