Material prices for the glass and glazing industry ticked up in March, according to USGNN.com™ analysis of Producer Price Index (PPI) data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

The PPI program measures the average change over time in the selling prices received by domestic producers for their output. The prices included in the PPI are from the first commercial transaction for many products and some services.

The monthly PPI for flat glass in the commodity category increased a slight 0.1 percent in March to 132.8 after going unchanged in February at 132.8. Those prices were up 1.8 percent from a year ago. 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 stands at 104.1, indicating a 0.4-percent price increase for the month and a 3.3-percent increase from March 2016. The BLS notes that 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, which includes glazing systems, increased 0.7 percent over the month following a 0.6-percent decrease from January to February. That index, in the commodity grouping, is 217.4, representing a 2.6-percent price increase year-over-year.

Overall construction input prices rose for the fourth straight month, increasing by 0.3 percent from February and 4.4 percent from a year ago. Nonresidential construction input prices were up by 0.4 percent for the month and 4.4 percent for the year.