Contractors and people in trouble

The high price of construction materials has forced many projects to delay progress. IN PHOTO: Construction site in Hoa Minh ward, Lien Chieu district. Photo: TRONG HUNG

Material prices skyrocket

Since the beginning of 2025, people and construction businesses in Da Nang have continuously complained about the high prices of materials such as sand, bricks, stones, etc. and the increasing scarcity. According to records, the price of construction sand currently fluctuates from 550,000 to 700,000 VND/m³, of which plaster sand (yellow sand) exceeds 700,000 VND/m³ - an unprecedented high price. These days, many construction material dealers in Da Nang report the price of construction sand ranging from 550,000 to 750,000 VND/m³, an increase of nearly 150,000 VND compared to the previous month and 200,000 VND/m³ higher than the beginning of 2025. Not only has the price increased, the supply of sand is also becoming seriously scarce.

“There are days when I make dozens of phone calls but still cannot find any sand trucks,” said Nguyen Tuan, the owner of a housing project in Thanh Khe district. Nguyen Van Hoa, Director of Hy Ma Joint Stock Company, a unit that is constructing many large projects in the area, said: “The supply cannot meet the demand. If we stop, the progress will be delayed, and if we do, there will be no materials or there will be but not enough valid documents, which can easily lead to violations.” Sharing the same opinion, Nguyen Cong Hieu, Director of Nam Trung Hieu Trading and Service Company Limited (a construction materials business), said: “The supply of sand and bricks in Da Nang mainly depends on mines in Dai Loc district ( Quang Nam ). When the source has problems, the market is immediately affected, causing significant impacts on contractors constructing projects under contracts.”

Not only sand prices have increased, but the prices of bricks and tiles in the Da Nang market range from 1,750-2,100 VND/piece, an increase of 400-600 VND/piece compared to the beginning of the year (depending on the type of brick). However, many dealers said that despite the high prices, goods are still "dripping", the supply from factories in Quang Nam is unstable, many places have to wait 4-6 days to order. Mr. Nguyen Hoang (Lien Chieu district) shared: "My house was built in March. The house is estimated to cost about 60,000 bricks, now the price increase has caused the total cost of bricks to increase to 25 million VND. When there is a shortage, workers have to take a few days off to wait for materials, greatly affecting the progress".

In addition, the price of ready-mixed concrete in Da Nang has continuously increased by about 15% since the beginning of the year compared to the beginning of 2025. Notably, many businesses supplying ready-mixed concrete have announced a temporary suspension of product supply for construction projects, mainly due to the scarcity of input materials, especially sand. Recently, Da Nang Housing Development and Construction Joint Stock Company announced a temporary suspension of the supply of ready-mixed concrete for civil works and some ongoing projects from May 18, 2025. The reason given is that many sand mines in Quang Nam are temporarily suspending exploitation to serve inspection work, causing a serious shortage of sand supply for concrete production.

Proposed solutions to "cool down"

Faced with a situation where supply cannot meet demand and prices are skyrocketing, businesses and people expect strong and timely intervention from state management agencies to stabilize the market. According to Mr. Nguyen Viet Khue, Director of PKC Construction Company Limited, the prices of construction materials such as sand, bricks, and ready-mixed concrete have increased by 10-30%. Meanwhile, many construction contracts were signed in advance with low unit prices that cannot be adjusted. This causes businesses to suffer losses and bear costs beyond their capacity.

According to the Department of Construction, there are currently no construction sand mines in the area, so there are many difficulties. In the near future, when Da Nang city merges with Quang Nam province, the city will have solutions to ensure the source of construction materials in the area. Construction enterprises believe that, to stabilize the supply, the authorities need to make the material market transparent, especially sand and bricks; at the same time, strictly handle the situation of hoarding, tax evasion, and exploitation without invoices. Re-planning the exploitation area to reduce dependence on one locality is also an urgent requirement. In addition, it is necessary to build a flexible mechanism to adjust contract prices, especially for projects signed before the sharp price increase and encourage the use of alternative and recycled materials to reduce pressure on traditional supply sources. Enterprises also requested the Department of Construction and the Department of Industry and Trade to strengthen forecasting, periodically announce prices, and provide data to help contractors and people proactively respond.

TRONG HUNG

Source: https://baodanang.vn/kinhte/202505/gia-vat-lieu-xay-dung-tang-nha-thau-nguoi-dan-gap-kho-4006890/