The Legislative Assembly approved in second debate a bill that aims to tax in the country the sale and self-consumption of imported or locally produced cement.
The initiative, which was approved in the first debate in the Assembly in mid-February and is still pending approval by the Executive Branch, establishes that the tax will be on imported cement produced nationally, in bags or in bulk, for sale or self-consumption, of any kind, whose destination is the consumption and marketing of the product nationally.
The Assembly approved in first debate a bill that seeks to tax the sale and self-consumption of cement that is imported or locally produced.
The initiative establishes that the tax will be on cement imported and produced nationally, in bags or in bulk, for sale or self-consumption, of any kind, whose destination is the consumption and marketing of the product at the national level, reported the Legislative Assembly.
In Costa Rica, the building and social housing price indexes recorded year-on-year changes of -0.87% and -0.48%, respectively, in January of this year.
From the report of the National Institute of Statistics and Census:
The construction price indexes based on February 2012 are a set of twenty statistical indicators, which measure the variation in the prices of materials used in the construction of different types of works.
About 60% of the apartments in the district of Santa Ana, Costa Rica, have prices per square meter that range from US$1,500 to US$2,000.
An analysis of the real estate supply by area, prepared by the Trade Intelligence Unit of CentralAmericaData, shows interesting results on the behavior and distribution of prices per square meter in the sector of Santa Ana, in the province of San José.
In Costa Rica, in the tenth month of the year, the price indexes for buildings and social housing registered year on year variations of 1.62% and 1.07%, respectively.
From the National Institute of Statistics and Census statement:
The price indexes for construction base February 2012 are a set of twenty statistical indicators, which measure the variation in the prices of materials used in the construction of different types of works.
During the first six months of the year, the construction area processed in the country totaled 1.28 million square meters, an area that is 12% less than that reported in the same period of 2018.
January records the largest construction area in the semester. Houses of less than 40 square meters showed increases in the number of buildings and value, but not in the area with respect to the first half of 2018, reported the National Institute of Statistics and Censuses (INEC).
After the 13% drop registered between 2016 and 2017 in the square meters of buildings processed, between 2017 and last year, there was a slight increase of 2%.
According to figures from the Costa Rican Chamber of Construction (CCC) the construction of the industrial sector was the fastest growing in 2018, with a 30.4% increase, thanks to the growth in the processing of warehouses.
In the tenth month of the year, the price indexes for buildings and social housing registered 3.2% and 2.4% year-on-year variations, respectively.
From the statement of the National Institute of Statistics and Census:
The price indexes for construction base February 2012 are a set of twenty statistical indicators, which measure the variation in the material prices used in the construction of different types of projects.
In Costa Rica, importing companies are against the ArcelorMittal proposal, which consists of raising the steel rod income tax from 1% to 15%.
On November 5th, a public audience was held in which importing companies and ArcelorMittal presented their arguments before the Ministry of Economy, Industry and Commerce (MEIC) regarding the proposal to raise the import tariff on steel rod by 14%.
In Costa Rica during the first semester, an increase of almost 7% was reported in the number of works with respect to the same period in 2017, however the amount of constructed area has reduced by 26%.
From a report by the National Institute of Statistics and Census:
The variation in the construction area can be seen mainly in service buildings (100.25%).However, in buildings for other uses such as housing, commerce, and industry a decrease was observed; mainly in commerce (-50.55%).
Indices for prices of buildings and low-income housing registered interannual variations of 5.1% and 5.4%, respectively, in the eighth month of the year.
From a statement issued by the National Institute of Statistics and Census:
The price indexes of base construction in February 2012 are a set of twenty statistical indicators, which measure the variation in the prices of materials used in the construction of different types of works.They are composed of the price index of buildings, the price index of affordable housing, and a group of eighteen price indices of raw materials and special services.
The price indices for buildings and low-income housing registered year-on-year variations of 6.5% and 5.9%, respectively, in the sixth month of the year.
From a statement issued by the National Institute of Statistics and Census:
The price indexes of base construction in February 2012 are a set of twenty statistical indicators, which measure the variation in the prices of materials used in the construction of different types of works.They are composed of the price index of buildings, the price index of affordable housing, and a group of eighteen price indices of raw materials and special services.
Due to the performance of residential construction, during the first quarter of the year a decrease of 6% was reported in the total constructed area with respect to the same period in 2017.
The Central Bank of Costa Rica reported that "... In the first quarter of 2018, construction with a private destination reported a total of one million one hundred and fifty-nine thousand square meters built.According to the trend cycle series for the quarterly indicator of meters constructed, this implied a decrease of 6.3% compared to the same period in the previous year."
The prices of buildings and low-income housing prices recorded year-on-year variations of 9.1% and 5.9%, respectively, in the second month of the year.
From a statement issued by the National Institute of Statistics and Census:
Price indices for construction based on February 2012 are a set of twenty statistical indicators, which measure the change in prices of materials used in the construction of different kinds of works. They are composed of the buildings price index, the social housing price index, and a group of eighteen price indices for raw materials and special services.
The builders' association has reported that 6.4 million square meters were processed in 2017, 13% less than in 2016.
In a statement from the Costa Rican Chamber of Construction (CCC), the president of the organization, Jorge Arturo González, said that "... 'this slowdown highlights the need to boost private sector investment in construction, which has stopped not only because of political uncertainty, typical of an election year, but also due to excessive procedures, high financing costs, legal uncertainty, low competitiveness in infrastructure and high construction costs, among other things'."Seereport by the CCC (in Spanish).