despite an overall softening in the construction market.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\u201cCopper is one of the few benchmark materials in which the cost borne by stakeholders in the construction industry are typically shaped by demand factors outside of it,\u201d Giffin said. \u201cWe have continued electrification of equipment and facilities across the country, plus a huge surge in the growth of data centers and all the surrounding electrical grids. It\u2019s bringing up a massive demand spike for copper.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\nAnalysts think those higher prices are likely to persist as supply-side constraints add to demand pressure. China, for example, consumes roughly half of the world\u2019s copper supply, Giffin said. If that continues to weigh on the market while mining productivity struggles to keep pace, expect copper prices to continue their upward trajectory.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\u201cRemember that it takes an average of 17 years for a new copper mine to go from discovery to active production,\u201d Giffin said. \u201cSo, if that external demand doesn\u2019t diminish and our productivity and supplies aren\u2019t increasing any faster, copper prices are likely to continue climbing even higher than they are.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\nBeyond raw copper, cost increases are spilling over into other electrical and mechanical components.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\nGiffin pointed to copper wire as one of the clearest examples. Long lead times for major equipment that has copper components, including transformers and chillers, have intensified price appreciation.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\u201cThere are other categories starting to show this pressure,\u201d Giffin said. \u201cThey\u2019re bucking the trend of previous years by increasing in price in the first quarter.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\nSteel pricing, on the other hand, posted more of a \u201cmixed bag,\u201d Giffin added. That\u2019s largely due to what analysts are referring to as \u201csupply side discipline,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\u201cWith reduced demand and reduced import volumes, the market is stable,\u201d Giffin said. \u201cThe lack of expansion might signal some stagnation on the horizon.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\nConcrete and masonry, meanwhile, show a different pattern. Demand is constrained, but prices for certain inputs are sitting at their highest nominal levels since the highs of the pandemic.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\u201cIn categories like ready-mix concrete and concrete block, our prices are elevated relative to previous years,\u201d Giffin said. \u201cGiven the trends in the market that are limiting demand for concrete cement, it seems likely that prices for these material categories are going to remain constrained for the better part of 2026.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n[ad_2]
\n
This article was originally posted at Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"[ad_1] Listen to the article 4 min This audio is auto-generated. Please let us know if you have feedback. Dive … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[457],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-34020","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-construction-dive","generate-columns","tablet-grid-50","mobile-grid-100","grid-parent","grid-33"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34020","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=34020"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34020\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=34020"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=34020"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=34020"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}