Construction costs are currently skyrocketing

Well, that is very generalized and sounds as if one must be unhappy as a tenant. And I certainly am not. For me it was always irrelevant, even the opposite, ownership of course obliges you to many things that my landlord takes care of. And I also agree

by the way, please do have a look at how the average Italian or Portuguese lives. Often simply the smallest apartments without central heating, single glazing, etc.

with that. Which of course, as many have already pointed out here, leads to higher costs.

Maybe prosperity is also inversely correlated with home ownership? Just a thought ;)

I find the idea very correct concerning the middle class. Prosperity does not arise from money alone. No direct corruption, strong protection against dismissal and other rights as a tenant, landlords also have their claims enforced... these are achievements of our social system. The more unstable it becomes, the riskier renting out and renting are. Then people prefer to buy and sell, as no clear conditions are otherwise to be expected.

I am sure of that. Russia also needs international trade in the long run in order not to slip completely.

the question is only:
does Putin need trade with the EU?
or are China, India, Africa, Iran, ... enough for him

and a quick Google search finds a report from peacetime = July last year:

"Russian President Vladimir Putin instructed the government to introduce a ban on the export of untreated roundwood from the country starting January 1, 2022. This emerges from a list of instructions published on the Kremlin website following the congress of the 'United Russia' party."

oh yes ... in 2020 Russia was the second largest wood exporter worldwide after Canada ...

--> political decisions in Moscow can therefore have a very direct impact on construction (material) costs if someone needs a roof frame!

and now once again this here: renewed lockdown of the port of Shenzhen in China (for presumably at least one week)

When things are steaming, then properly :(

and now once again this: renewed lockdown of the port of Shenzhen in China (for at least one week, presumably)

A question about this (it has certainly been discussed before, but I only follow the thread sporadically and can’t find anything about it right now): Wasn’t the main problem during Corona that China and the USA completely bought out the (also European) market after the economy there (before the European one) had picked up again, which here led to material shortages and reduced supply (example: construction lumber)?

Or are such large quantities of building materials actually imported from countries like China, which then leads, for example, through lockdowns in Chinese ports, to significant shortages and delays here as well? This is clear for steel, but otherwise?

For me, the first point was actually always the decisive one for our situation here locally.