Annual increase in construction costs continues to slow
ISTANBUL
The annual increase in the construction cost index continued to slow for the eight month in a row in January, data from the Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜİK) has shown.
The headline cost index rose by 26.6 percent year-on-year in January, easing from the annual increase of 34.3 percent in the previous month.
The index, however, advanced 9.1 percent in January from December, marking the highest monthly increase since January 2023, when the index surged 15.7 percent.
In the construction sector, labor costs were up 23.6 percent month-on-month and 34.7 percent year-on-year.
The materials cost index rose by 1.96 percent monthly, while the annual increase was 22.4 percent.
The year-on-year increase in the building construction cost index slowed from 34.7 percent in December 2024 to 27.09 percent in January.
The Central Bank reported last month that the residential property price index recorded an annual increase of 31.9 percent in January in nominal terms. The monthly increase was 4.7 percent.
In real terms, the index declined by 7.2 percent.
The price index for new dwellings rose 33.9 percent annually and 5.2 percent monthly, the bank said.
In January, the housing market expanded 39.7 percent from a year ago, buoyed by the sharp increase in mortgaged home sales.
In the same month, 112,173 homes changed hands, while mortgage home sales surged 183 percent annually to 16,726 units.
