COST UPDATE

摘要

A Building costs are pulled in different directions, with labour rates frozen and materials prices rising rapidly A Consumer price inflation is at twice target and forecast to go higher before heading back towards target in 2012 A Manufacturing input costs are at heady levels but output prices are unable to match them A Steel prices are pushing construction prices back towards double-digit inflation More wage agreements are frozen; builders await a possible new settlement Construction earnings are still falling but redundancies are declining.