Information from the Statistics and Census Service shows that in the first quarter of 2005, price indices rose in most of the surveyed construction materials compared with the fourth quarter of 2004. Among them, steel, aluminium, sand, concrete, lime, aggregates, timber, red bricks, ceramic products, glass, paint, pipes and electric wires rose between 0.03% and 11.2%. However, price indices of sanitary articles and cement fell 0.4% and 0.1% respectively.

Among the above changes in price indices, sand recorded the largest increase of 11.2%, whereas the largest decrease was in sanitary articles, down 0.4%.

Compared with the first quarter of 2004, price indices rose in most of the surveyed construction materials, with the biggest increase in electric wires, up 62.4%, whereas steel decreased the most, by 2.7%.