Construction costs registers slight increase

TIRANA, May 24 – The construction cost index rose 0.1 percent year-on-year during the first quarter of 2010 and 0.2 percent compared to the previous quarter, data published by the Institute of Statistic shave shown. Direct expenses rose by 0.2 percent while material expenses by 0.3 percent compared to last quarter of 2009.
Construction and electric material prices rose by 0.3 and 0.5 percent respectively compared to the previous quarter. Transport and machinery expenses also rose by 0.6 and 0.2 percent.
The Construction Cost Index calculates the difference of expenses in construction considering the change of basic input prices such as construction materials, construction vehicles and equipment, expenses for employees.
The construction sector was the hardest hit by the global economic crisis in 2009.
Construction, whose activity in the last quarter of 2009 shrank by 14.4 per cent compared with same period of 2008 and 11.8 per cent from the third quarter of 2009, suffered from lack of liquidity, according to INSTAT.