Kim Ei-tak, first vice minister of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, on the 20th said, "We must minimize the impact that difficulties in the supply of construction materials and rising prices will have not only on SOC construction such as roads and railways, but also on the supply of dwellings," and asked, "So that we can assure the public that the government is closely managing the situation, please make every effort to proactively manage the entire supply chain from material production to construction completion."
Vice Minister Kim said this after receiving a report via videoconference in the morning from the administrators of the five regional land management offices (Seoul, Wonju, Daejeon, Iksan, Busan) on the production and supply status of key construction materials such as finishing materials amid the prolonged Middle East war.
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) has operated an emergency economy task force (TF) for construction sites since the 3rd of this month and is checking, on a daily basis, the supply and price trends of key materials, including finishing materials such as admixtures for ready-mixed concrete, asphalt, insulation, windows and doors, adhesives, and sealants.
In particular, as anxiety has intensified across petrochemical feedstock products, MOLIT has mobilized the personnel of its five regional land offices to carry out a "special on-site inspection" since the 10th, covering not only the supply of final goods but also the entire supply chain, including intermediates, raw material production, and distribution.
At the meeting, participants discussed establishing real-time communication channels among MOLIT headquarters (Emergency Economy TF), regional offices, and material manufacturers for each construction material to more specifically identify material supply and price trends and respond quickly, as well as regularly briefing the public on related developments.