On Thursday 24th April the Cyprus Statistical Service published data on the change in the prices of construction materials for March 2025.
According to the service's report, as in the previous two months of the new year, their prices increased.
Specifically, the price index for building materials reached 118.81 points (based on 2015 = 100), an increase of 0.2% compared to the previous month and 1.38% compared to a year ago.
Minerals (+3.9%), mineral products (+3.22%), wood, insulation materials, chemical and plastic products (+0.79%) recorded the largest increases in February 2025. On the other hand, there was a decrease in the price of basic metals (-1.09%).
At the same time, there were multidirectional trends in the construction materials sub-categories. Sales of mineral aggregates increased by 8.09%, natural stone by 6.81%, while the cement segment recorded a slight decrease of 0.19%.
In the metal products sector, iron and steel products fell by 2.46%, while output of aluminium and other metal products rose by 1.79%. Among electro-mechanical products, electrical equipment showed strong growth of 6.47%, while heating and cooling equipment fell by 7.19%.
In turn, from January to March 2025, the index recorded an increase of 1.09% compared to the corresponding period in 2024.
It should be recalled that the price index for construction products reflects the change in the prices of construction projects of different types of economic activity.
The increase in the cost of building materials used in residential construction on the island is mainly related to price dynamics in the global market, in which the construction sector in Cyprus is highly integrated. This may point to further increases in house prices.
At the same time, the increase in the cost of building materials often has an impact on the mortgage loans of individuals and companies. In many cases, the money secured by the construction loans turns out to be insufficient: all initial estimates are fundamentally altered. Borrowers are forced to go back to the bank to ask for an increase in the original loan amount. Banks scrutinise all cases of borrowers who return to them, trying to determine whether the client will be able to withstand the additional financial burden and even larger loans.