Viktor Leshchynsky: “Currently, the cost of building materials is being held back by builders themselves”
Is the domestic building materials market ready to fully meet the needs for the restoration of infrastructure and housing during martial law, will there be a further increase in prices for building materials, and what can be expected from the market after the end of the war?
This was stated by the President of the National Expert Construction Alliance of Ukraine, Viktor Leshchynsky.
— Viktor Petrovich, is the domestic building materials market ready to fully meet the needs for the restoration of infrastructure and housing during martial law?
— The building materials market in Ukraine is quite developed. Therefore, it can satisfy all the needs that will arise. Even if there are any shortages, all this is solved by imports. You can also always equip one or another factory and the situation will level out. For example, this was the case with the production of drywall at one time. Then they built several factories and supplied the market with them in the necessary volumes.
— Currently, there is a significant increase in the dollar exchange rate. How much will this affect the cost of building materials?
— In my opinion, the building materials market is not panicking. There is a reaction to the current situation. For example, several drywall manufacturers have now entered the occupied territory and the combat zone. And the market reacted to this by raising the price of this material. Because logistics have changed. As for metal, it began to rise in price last year. It rose significantly in price in February, because the situation was unclear.
Now the price is gradually leveling off. If something negative was happening in the country before, then prices were soaring. Now the market is regulating itself. The price is rising more for those materials where there is a shortage. Even if we take glass, it is not produced in Ukraine, but the price for it has not jumped. After all, there are warehouse stocks. And the main consumer has currently suspended its activities. So there is no excitement for this product.
If we talk about cement, then the enterprises producing it were idle for several months. And we did not feel this on the market, because there were also considerable stocks in the warehouses. In summary, there is a general increase in price, but compared to today’s dollar exchange rate, it is insignificant. Under normal circumstances, if there was no war, then prices at this dollar exchange rate would already be cosmic.
— Ukraine recently became a candidate for EU membership. Will this affect the prices of building materials in the future?
— I don’t think so. We didn’t have any problems transporting our materials for sale anyway. Perhaps now more of our manufacturers will try to enter the European market. At the same time, prices for building materials for export may vary and be higher. And for the domestic market, the price trend will remain the same. This will have no impact.
— What can we expect from the construction market after the end of the war?
— After the war ends, significant investments will come to Ukraine. And this will affect the rise in the price of building materials. As practice shows, the cost of building materials is currently being held back by the builders themselves. Since they have no orders. As soon as work resumes, the building materials market will react to this. However, the situation will also depend on the amount of money the main buyers have.
