Glass and Glazing Prices Tick Up in April

Prices for materials used in glass and glazing manufacturing have collectively increased in April 2019 according to the latest Producer Price Index (PPI) from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

In April, the monthly PPI for flat glass in the commodity category increased 0.4 percent from the previous month and year. According to the BLS, the commodity classification “organizes products and services by similarity or material composition, regardless of the industry classification of the producing establishment.”

The index for flat glass manufacturing in the industry classification jumped 0.9 percent from March 2019, and is up 0.8 percent a year-over-year basis. The industry classification measures “changes in prices received for the industry’s output sold outside the industry (that is, its net output).”

Prices for fabricated structural metal products are down 0.7 percent from March 2019. That index, in the commodity grouping, is up 3.8 percent for the year. Ornamental and architectural metal product manufacturing, in the industry category, dipped 0.4 percent in April. It has experienced a 5.6-percent increase since April 2018.

The PPI for metal windows is up 0.6 percent from its March 2019 level. It’s up 9.9 percent from the April 2018 report a year ago. Metal doors and frames showed an increase of 0.4 percent in April. The category is up 5.8 percent for the year.

The cost of builders’ hardware, which includes hardware used in glass and glazing, dropped 0.2 percent in April. However, that price is 3.5-percent higher than in April 2018.