Glass and Glazing Materials Prices See Year-Over-Year Increases

While the prices for some materials (seasonally unadjusted) used in glass and glazing manufacturing fell back in January from the December 2020 report, all categories experienced an increase compared to January 2020, according to the latest Producer Price Index (PPI) from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

In January, the monthly PPI for flat glass in the commodity category is down 0.6% from the previous month, but up 2.9% from January 2020. 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 January index for flat glass manufacturing in the industry classification dropped 1.8% from December 2020. However, it’s up 4.2% on 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 increased 0.7% from last month’s PPI report. That index, in the commodity grouping, is up 3.2% from a year ago. The index for ornamental and architectural metal product manufacturing, in the industry category, moved slightly, decreasing 0.2% from December 2020 to January 2021. However, it has experienced a 1.1% jump since January 2020.

The PPI for metal windows increased 0.1% in January. However, it has climbed 3.8% compared to the January 2020 report. The price for metal doors and frames is also up slightly, 0.1%, from December. The category is up 1.1% for the year.

The cost of builders’ hardware, including that used in glass and glazing, was up 0.4% from the December 2020 report and experienced a 0.2% increase compared to the January 2020 report.

Monthly and Yearly Change in Glass and Glazing Material Prices