The Construction Costs Index for the A.C. of the Basque Country rose 0.1% in October 2003 with regard to the previous month, making a 2.5% rise in the inter-annual rate for the month, according to EUSTAT data. The rate for the first ten months of the year, in relation to last December, underwent the same rise of 2.5%.

In the inter-annual period (October 2003 compared to October 2002), labour costs increased 5.8%, while costs of raw materials registered a 0.2% rise.

Total costs for the sub-sectors of Building and Civil Works followed similar patterns in October: Building costs registered a 0.1% increase with respect to the previous month, while costs for Civil Works went up by 0.2% in relation to September. Inter-annual evolution shows growth for both of these sub-sectors, although to slightly different extents: Building costs grew 2.4%, while for Civil Works they underwent an increase of 2.8%.

Among the most inflationary price rates for raw materials consumed by the sector in October 2003 were: Cleaning and hygiene materials (2.5%), Asphalt products (2.4%), Oil by-products (1.8%) and Plastic tubing (1.4%). On the other hand, there were reductions in the average prices of the following raw materials: Lime, gypsum and plaster (-0.3%), Oil and grease (-0.3%), Other metal articles (-0.2%), Explosives and gases (-0.1%) and Glass (-0.1%).