Key building materials are soaring in price by as much as 36 per cent as war in the Middle East threatens to bring Aussie construction projects to a standstill. <\/p>\n
Fuel surcharges, supply train disruptions and financing pressure from the recent cash rate hike are biting down on a sector that had barely recovered from similar chaos during Covid.<\/p>\n
Reece Group, the country\u2019s biggest supplier of plumbing materials, has informed customers of massive price increases taking effect from April 18.<\/p>\n
Prices for HDPE pipe and fittings – used in civil infrastructure – will increase by up to 36 per cent.<\/p>\n
Twinwall Corrugated Stormwater Pipe and Fittings – used in stormwater drainage – will increase by up to 31 per cent, while PVC Pipe and Fittings, the most common material for residential plumbing, will be hiked by up to 28.5 per cent.<\/p>\n
MORE:Why constuction costs are about to boom<\/a><\/p>\n Oil is used in the manufacturing process for plastics, and Australia also imports most of its plastic products from overseas, meaning higher fuel prices impact the cost of getting them to our shores.<\/p>\n \u201cThis issue affects our entire industry, and things are changing daily,\u201d a Reece Group spokesperson told news.com.au. <\/p>\n \u201cLike we always do, we\u2019re focusing on helping our long term customers who want to understand and plan for what the impact on their business might be.\u201d<\/p>\n Master Builders CEO Denita Wawn said builders were also reporting price increases for cement, ceramics and glass.<\/p>\n \u201cDue to fixed price contract arrangements, most builders are being forced to absorb these cost increases,\u201d Ms Wawn told news.com.au. <\/p>\n \u201cThis could flip many homebuilding projects from profitability to being loss-making for the builders concerned. Where costs could go is hard to predict, with the situation continuing to move.\u201d <\/p>\n \u2018There goes Australian residential construction\u2019<\/p>\n Executive chairman of online freight marketplace Loadshift, Matt Barrie, said both the cost of building materials, and the price for moving them around the country, had skyrocketed. <\/p>\n \u201cWe import everything, we don\u2019t refine fuels \u2014 we\u2019re completely reliant as a price taker on everything,\u201d Mr Barrie told news.com.au.<\/p>\n \u201cThere goes Australian residential construction,\u201d was Mr Barrie\u2019s comment on the letter from Reece Group to customers.<\/p>\n