The Construction Costs Index of the A.C. of the Basque Country registered a 0.5% rise during March 2004 in relation to the previous month, making the inter-annual rate for the month 3.9%, according to EUSTAT data.

In March 2004, labour costs underwent no change at all (0.0%), while raw material costs registered a rise of 0.8%.

The sub-sectors of Building and Civil Works registered differing evolutions, with 0.7% growth compared to the previous month in the case of Building and an increase of 1.2% in the raw material costs for Civil Works, which is to say point five per cent more. The inter-annual evolution of these two sub-sectors also presented differing trends: raw material costs for Building increased 4.2%, while those of raw materials for Civil Works accumulated an increase of 2.5%.

In March the highest price rises occurred in the raw materials consumed in Metal piping (6.7%), Oil by-products (6.0%), Explosives and gases (3.3%), Lime, plaster and gypsum (2.4%) and Iron and steel (2.2%). On the other hand, there were price reductions for the raw materials of Accessories for machinery used (-1.6%), Cleaning and hygiene material (-1.6%), Glass (-1.1%) and Plastic piping and heat insulation (-0.8%), among others.

Among the raw materials consumed by the sector to undergo highest rates of inflation over the last twelve months were: Iron and steel (12.3%), Metal piping (10.1%), Lime, plaster and gypsum (10.0%), Cement by-products (7.5%), and Paint and varnish (7.1%). Conversely, there were reductions in inter-annual prices (March 2004 in relation to March 2003) for raw material prices of Asphalt products (-8.8%), Oil by-products (-8.6%), Worked stone (-5.0%), Office material (-3.9%) and Glass (-3.6%).