Home / Business and Politics / The Price of Iron Has Fallen, but a Decline in the Prices of Other Construction Materials Is Not in Sight

The Price of Iron Has Fallen, but a Decline in the Prices of Other Construction Materials Is Not in Sight

Construction material prices worldwide have not begun to fall, despite some announcements to that effect, except for the decline in iron prices. This has been confirmed to us by Dragutin Kamenski, the owner of the largest domestic construction company Kamgrad, and Marko Tadić, a member of the Management Board of Osijek Koteksa.

Kamenski states that only the price of iron has recently fallen from ten kuna per kilogram to eight to 8.5 kuna, and in some places even less. Although not negligible, this is still a slight decline considering that iron has increased from 3.10 kuna to 6.50 kuna over the past two years, and after the Russian aggression against Ukraine, it jumped to ten kuna.

image

Dragutin Kamenski

foto

– I am not sure that the price will continue to fall; in fact, it is very difficult for me to say how it will move further, but it is certain that there will not be a significant decline until the current political situation in the world stabilizes, as well as until supply chains are fully restored to the state they were in before the pandemic. But what prices will be, no one knows – says Kamenski.

One should not rule out price increases

Tadić also mentions the decline in iron prices over the last two months, while everything else continues to rise, particularly highlighting energy costs. Neither Kamenski nor Tadić mention a decline in the prices of other construction materials, nor that prices for materials will begin to fall. Tadić believes that prices will even continue to rise, primarily for energy sources, and since they are an important component in the production of construction materials, one should not exclude further price increases.

Essentially, everything will depend largely on the current situation, consequently on the price of energy sources, which will also affect the prices of construction materials. Tadić believes that in the next year we have little reason for optimism.

image

Marko Tadić

foto Goran Gazdek

– I consider this decline in the price of iron to be a certain short-term retraction caused by a disruption in the supply and demand for iron. Demand surged sharply during 2020 and 2021, while supply reacted with a certain delay. Now, due to the significant rise in prices, demand is weakening. But iron production is also under pressure from rising input prices, primarily energy, so I doubt that prices will remain at this current level until the end of the year.

Unfortunately, as well-informed interlocutors say, despite some announcements, a decline in the prices of construction materials is not in sight.