Construction Input Prices Up Slightly in July, Mostly Copper Materials

by David Flaherty | 14 August 2025 1:09 pm

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Construction input prices increased 0.4 percent in July compared to the previous month, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) analysis of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Producer Price Index data. Nonresidential construction input prices also increased 0.4 percent for the month.

Overall construction input prices are 2.2 percent higher than a year ago, while nonresidential construction input prices are 2.6 percent higher. Prices increased in two of the three energy categories last month. Crude petroleum and unprocessed energy materials prices were up 1.7 percent and 0.5 percent, respectively, while natural gas prices decreased 2.1 percent in July.

Construction equipment and materials were up 0.4 percent; copper[2] wire and cable up 4.9 percent; fabricated structural metal products up 0.1 percent; hot rolled bars, shapes, and structural shapes up 5.3 percent; insulation materials down 0.8 percent; iron and steel were down 0.2 percent; and steel mill products were down 0.5 percent.

Overall, construction input prices remain 43 percent higher than in February 2020 and are up 2.2 percent from June 2025.

“Construction materials prices continued to increase too quickly in July,” says ABC chief economist Anirban Basu. “Nonresidential input prices have risen at a 5.8 percent annualized rate since January, and trade policy will likely continue to put upward pressure on materials prices over the next several months. Copper wire and cable prices, for instance, surged 5 percent in July and are now up 12.2 percent over the past year. While contractors remain relatively upbeat, according to ABC’s Construction Confidence Index, input price escalation may diminish profit margins during the final months of the year.

“The rapid increase in broader producer prices in July is just as worrying as rising construction input costs,” says Basu. “With prices for final demand goods and services rising at the fastest pace since March 2022, the Federal Reserve will have to consider the prospect of resurgent inflation when deciding whether or not to cut rates at its September meeting. The construction industry is in desperate need of lower borrowing costs, and higher rates for longer would continue to weigh on construction spending.”

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