Statistics Centre – Abu Dhabi (SCAD) issued today its monthly + quarterly report on the prices of building materials for the month of March and the first quarter of 2014.
The report presents an analysis of the movements in the prices of the various materials used in the construction industry in Abu Dhabi retail market, comparing March 2014 prices with those of February 2014 and March 2013. The dissemination of this important report, which presents a wide range of price data, is intended to serve the needs of data users in the public and private sectors for the purposes of research, planning and decision making in ways that support the construction sector as well as related and dependent sectors.
Building materials prices: March/February 2014 Compared with February 2014, the average prices building materials grew in March 2013 by 1.5 percent for “Wood” and 5.8 percent for “Construction labour costs”, while price falls ranged between 0.2 percent for “Steel” and “uPVC pipes” 3.8 percent for “Power cables”.
Construction labour costs According to SCAD’s report, average “construction labour costs” rose by 5.8 percent in March compared with February 2014, reflecting rises in wages for most trades, ranging from 5.9 to 11.1 percent, while the wages of “Surveyors” and “Drivers/operators” remained unchanged.
Power cable The average prices of “Power cables” decreased by 3.8 percent in March compared with February 2014, reflecting price falls in the all of the items of group.
Wood As SCAD’s report finds, the average price of the “Wood” group advanced by 1.5 percent in March compared with February 2014, as a result of a falls in some items in within this group.
Pipes The average prices of the “PVC pipes” group advanced by 2.2 percent in March 2013 compared with February 2014, due mainly to increases in some items within this group, while the average prices of the “Pipes (uPVC)” group decreased by 1.0 percent, reflecting price falls in all of the items constituting this group.
Paints The “Paints” group decreased by 0.5 percent in March 2014, as a result of a 20.0 percent fall in the price per Gallon of “Mamorex Paint\ Bangalac Glos” compared with February 2014.
Building materials prices: March 2014 compared with March 2013 Price falls were reported for 15 groups of building materials in March 2014 compared with March 2013. The drops ranged between 0.4 percent for “Tiles and marble” and 7.5 percent for “Power cable”. The largest falls were as follows: Wires SCAD reported a net fall in the average price of “Wires” in March 2014 compared with March 2013. “Wires for apartments” accounted for the largest decrease (7.1 percent), while “Wires for residential towers” and “Wires for small buildings” declined by 3.8 percent and 2.6 percent, respectively.
Power cable The average prices of “Power cable” decreased by 7.5 percent in March 2014, as a result of decreases in all the items of this group compared with March 2013.
Sanitary ware The average prices of “”Stainless steel sinks with single mixer” and “Bathroom set with accessories” decreased by 6.0 percent and 5.4 percent y-o-y respectively, during March 2014, while the average prices of the “Bathroom set without accessories” subgroup advanced by 1.6 percent in March 2014 compared with March 2014.
On the other hand, price increases were recorded for the following groups of building materials during March 2014 compared with March 2013: Natural Stone The average prices of the “Natural Stone” group increased by 0.81 percent in March 2014 compared with March 2013.
Aggregates and sand Prices of the “Aggregates and sand” group increased by 20.0 percent in March 2014 compared with the same period in 2013, with the group’s items showing increases in the range of 9.1-40.0 percent.
Wood The average prices of the “Wood” group grew by 9.6 percent in March 2014 compared with March 2013, as most items within the group recorded price increases.
Building materials prices in Q1 2014 compared with Q4 2013 Higher average prices were recorded for most of the commodity groups of building materials during Q1 2014 compared with Q4 2013. The increases ranged between 0.3 percent for “Waterproofing products” and 1.1 percent for the “PVC pipes” group.
The average prices for “Aggregates and sand”, “Block”, “Roofing materials”, “Diesel”, “Natural stone”, “Sanitary ware” and “False ceiling” remained unchanged over Q1 2014 compared with Q4 2013.
On the other hand price falls were recorded for some commodity groups during in Q1 2014 compared with Q4 2013: the average cost of “Construction labour” decreased by 6.0 percent, “Concrete” by 2.9 percent, “Wire for apartments” by 1.2 percent and “uPVC pipes” by 1.1 percent.
Building materials prices in Q1 2014 compared with Q1 2013 The average prices of building materials showed variations with most increasing during Q1 2014 compared with Q1 2013.
Price increases ranged between 0.3 percent for “Cement” and 18.3 percent for “Aggregates and sand”. In addition, “Natural stone” increased by 18.0 percent, “Wood” by 8.2 percent, “Glass” by 3.4 percent and “Bathroom set without accessories” by 3.2%.
Source : WAM News Agency for United Arab Emirates