KUALA LUMPUR: The Building Materials Cost Index (BCI), without steel bars and with steel bars, for all building categories in Malaysia, increased between 0.3 and 24.4 per cent in July 2022 compared to a year ago, said the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM).

The department said that for the same period, the increase in BCI for Peninsular Malaysia was between 5.5 and 18.8 per cent, Sabah between 0.3 and 15.5 per cent and Sarawak between 5.6 and 24.4 per cent.

It said an annual comparison for the period of July 2021 and July 2022 shows an increase in BCI with steel bars for all areas in Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah and Sarawak.

"The category of buildings that recorded the highest increase in Peninsular Malaysia was for five-storey and above (reinforced concrete) building (for office) in Selangor, Kuala Lumpur, Melaka and Negeri Sembilan. 

"The building category that recorded the highest increase in Sabah and Sarawak was reinforced concrete in Sandakan and Miri," DoSM said in the Index For Building And Structural Works, July 2022 report today.

DOSM said BCI without steel bars increased between 5.5 and 14. 1 per cent for all building categories in Peninsular Malaysia.

The building category that recorded the highest increase was five-storey and above (reinforced concrete) building (for office) for Peninsular Malaysia was in Pahang, reinforced concrete in Penang, Kedah and Perlis.

The building category that recorded the highest increase in Sabah was single-storey steel frame (towers only) in Sandakan. Meanwhile, the highest BCI without steel bars in Sarawak is a single-storey steel frame (building) in Miri, it said.

Meanwhile, the unit price index of building materials increased between 5.3 per cent and 15.5 per cent for July 2022 compared to a year ago.

The price index per unit of steel and steel & metal sections increased by 15.8 per cent and 13.5 per cent respectively in July 2022 compared to July 2021.

On a monthly comparison of construction materials and selected areas, there was a decrease in the unit price index of iron in all areas in Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah and Sarawak except in Miri (1.3 per cent) and Sibu (1.4 per cent).

"In addition, the decrease in the unit price index for steel and metal sections ranged from 0.2 to 3.4 per cent for all areas except for Pahang, Kota Kinabalu and Sibu," the department said.

The average unit price of steel consisting of mild steel round bars and mycon 60 high tensile deformed bars increased 12.9 per cent to record an average price of steel bar of RM3,879.48 per tonne compared to the previous year (July 2021: RM3,435.24 per tonne).

"Meanwhile, cement recorded an increase of 11.7 per cent in July 2022 at RM20.99 per 50 kg compared to RM18.89 per 50 kg in July 2021. However, the increase in prices for these two materials was slower than that of the previous month," DoSM said.