Steel, wood & worry: Building homes gets costlier as West Asia crisis hits material prices; construction cost up over 12%

INDORE: For thousands of middle-class families planning to build their dream homes, the ongoing tensions in West Asia are quietly turning that dream more expensive. Disruptions in petrochemical supply chains, shipping routes and raw material availability linked to the Gulf region have pushed up prices of several construction and interior materials, raising the cost of house construction across Madhya Pradesh.Builders and traders say the cost of constructing and finishing a house has risen by over 12% in recent weeks, as prices of key materials such as plywood, laminates, MDF boards, particle boards, iron, steel, aluminium, copper, paints and hardware have increased sharply. Narendra Bafna, vice-president of the All Bharat Plywood and Laminate Trade Vyaparia Association, said the West Asia crisis has directly affected the wood panel and interior material industry. "Prices of plywood, laminates and allied panel products across Madhya Pradesh have increased due to disruptions in petrochemical supply chains and shipping routes linked to the Gulf region. This is also raising concerns over the availability and cost of key inputs. Sales of plywood and laminates have dropped by nearly 50 per cent in recent weeks because prices are already high and demand from the construction and furniture sector has slowed," Bafna said.Several construction materials have seen noticeable price jumps in recent weeks. Iron rod prices, for instance, have increased from around Rs 50 per kg to nearly Rs 62 per kg, while plywood and laminates have become costlier due to higher resin and petrochemical input costs.Interior and finishing materials have also become costlier. ACP sheets, high-pressure laminates, modular furniture components, false ceiling materials and fittings are witnessing price pressure due to rising raw material costs and delays in shipments.Dheeresh Khare, President of the Confederation of Real Estate Developers Association (CREDAI), MP, said the surge in input costs is pushing up the overall cost of housing construction."PVC prices alone have jumped by nearly 30 per cent, and several other materials, including cement, have also become costlier. This is directly increasing the cost of building houses," Khare said. Developers said the average construction cost, which was earlier around Rs 1,600 per sq ft, has now moved closer to Rs 1,800 per sq ft due to the increase in material prices.Traders added that prices of paints, hardware and several other related materials have also gone up in recent weeks, further adding to the burden on home builders.