The unprecedented price increase of petroleum, along with the Pakistan rupee’s continued free fall against the dollar, has triggered dire effects in every sector, especially the construction sector.
Different reports state that these two factors have caused an alarming increase of more than 20% in the prices of materials commonly used for construction.
The price of high-quality bricks has jumped from PKR 12,500 to PKR 14,000. Similarly, the cost of cement and white cement have risen from PKR 720 to PKR 1040, and from PKR 1350 to PKR 1550 respectively. The price of sand has increased from PKR 28 per cubic foot to PKR 50 per cubic foot. Prices of crush leaped from PKR 38 per cubic foot in January 2021 to PKR 75 now.
Project completion costs have spiked from PKR 1550 per square foot to PKR 1800 per square foot. Higher-grade finishing work has increased from PKR 3050 to PKR 4150 per square foot.
It has also become difficult to price housing units for new projects as the costs of materials keep changing.
Contractors claim that this price escalation has caused an overall decline in investment in the construction industry. The Senior Vice Chairman of the Association of Builders and Developers (ABAD) stated that work has slowed down significantly in the last four months.
