Following the March 28 earthquake in Myanmar, the price of cement has surged in affected regions such as Mandalay, Naypyitaw and Sagaing, hampering reconstruction work.
Before the disaster, a sack of cement cost around 17,000 kyats (around US$4) with prices now reaching up to 40,000 kyats, according to builders.
Though the regime promised to subsidize cement prices for reconstruction work but this has only happened in Naypyitaw.
A Naypyitaw resident told The Irrawaddy: “The prices vary with a sack costing 30,000 kyats in sparsely populated places where the demand is low. But the sale is limited to 10 sacks per person. Shops where the regime is selling bags for 17,000 kyats are overcrowded with no room to queue.”
In Sagaing city, some building suppliers were damaged by the earthquake and most shops remain closed, leading to long queues at businesses that are operating, according to residents.
A contractor said: “We don’t want to suspend our business, so we are buying cement regardless of the price.”
A Mandalay resident said: “A few bags of cement can still be bought at smaller shops. Price varies and it costs me over 30,000 kyats.”
Brick prices have also almost doubled to 480 kyats, she said.
The Indian government recently donated 4,500 sacks of cement for earthquake recovery work but residents say this will mostly be used for reconstruction works in Naypyitaw.
A building sector source said: “The construction industry is also suffering from labor shortages. We are not doing any building work, just demolitions. We have to buy any brand of product, including domestically produced cement. Even the big companies are rationing cement sales.”
Cement prices had been increasing before the earthquake due to a decline in production. Only six of the nine cement plants are operating since the earthquake, producing around 340,000 sacks per day, according to the regime.
Before the 2021 coup, the price was around 5,000 kyats per sack.
Last month, junta officials inspected over 300 building suppliers in Naypyitaw, Yangon, Mandalay, Sagaing and Bago and filed cases against more than 60 shops for overcharging, according to the regime’s media.
