There has been extensive media coverage of the commodity price collapse that has occurred coincident with the turmoil in financial markets. The slowdown in the world economy has deflated the high-flying balloon of commodity prices. Reading about this is one thing. Seeing the results graphed, as in the accompanying charts, is another matter entirely. A picture can truly be worth a thousand words. For the construction industry, the first effect to take note of is the restraining impact this will have on material costs.