The prices of steel rods, Nepali cement and bricks -- the three major construction materials -- have dipped in the market. Contractors said the fall in the prices has made construction cheaper by some 10 percent as compared with three months ago. According to Nepal Construction Material Dealers´ Association, price of steel rod has dropped by nearly 15 percent to Rs 66 per kg inclusive of value added tax (VAT) as compared with the price in August. Since steel rod commands a whopping 29 percent weight in overall construction cost, this double-digit decline in its price alone has dragged down the overall construction cost by about 5 percent. Dealers attributed this drop in the price of steel rod to global decline in the price of raw steel. Likewise, the price of Nepali cement, which commands another 28 percent weight in construction budget, has dropped by some eight percent. Ajit Chalise of Sulabh Construction Suppliers at Kaushaltar said Nepali cement is currently being traded at about Rs 600 per sack (of 50 kg), which is cheaper by nearly Rs 50 than three months ago. Owing to this price difference, contractors said if an individual is presently buying Nepali cement for the construction works, he will find his cost shrunk by over 2 percent than what he would have incurred three months ago. But no such benefit will come if consumers are using Indian cement because the price of Indian cement has remained fairly constant at about Rs 665 per sack over this period. The price of bricks in the Valley, too, has dipped by 10 percent during the period. According to the association, the price of grade ´A´ bricks has dropped to Rs 9,000 per 1,000 pieces from Rs 10,000 three months ago. “The price of grade B bricks, which also includes broken pieces, is Rs 8,000 per 1,000 pieces,” said Chalise. Since bricks command 12 percent weight in overall construction budget, contractors said this has further dragged down the construction cost by about 1.5 percent. Contractors, however, noted that the people will not enjoy these lowered prices for long. Once the load-shedding hours pick up, which is projected to soar as high as 12 hours a day over the next three months, they said the producers of all construction commodities will raise their prices, citing increase in their cost of production. As for now, the price of sand has remained constantly high at Rs 45 per cubic feet over the last three months. The price of aggregate, too, has remained constant at Rs 40 per cubic feet.
Source: Republica