Construction retail prices rise for 8th straight month in Oct

Retail prices of construction materials in Metro Manila rose for the eighth straight month in October, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported yesterday.

The Construction Materials Retail Price Index ( CMRPI) in the National Capital Region (NCR) rose 2.3 percent in October – the fastest pace this year – from two percent the previous month and a reversal of the 1.4 percent contraction in October 2015.

PSA said the uptrend was primarily due to the 11.4 percent growth in miscellaneous construction materials.

Higher markups were also seen in the indices of electrical materials, painting materials and related compounds, and tinsmithry materials.

The annual uptick in the masonry material index, however, decelerated to 2.9 percent while flat growth was seen in the indices of carpentry materials and plumbing materials at 1.6 percent and 2.6 percent, respectively.

Retail prices have been on the downtrend since October last year until February this year before picking up pace in March.

Month-on-month, the CMRPI in Metro Manila rose 0.1 percent in October compared to negative 0.1 percent the previous month.

An increment of 0.3 percent was observed in miscellaneous construction materials index.

In addition, from negative rates recorded last month, the indices of carpentry materials rose 0.1 percent and painting materials and related compounds, 0.2 percent.

The index for electrical materials also went up 0.2 percent.

The increase, however, in plumbing materials index slowed to 0.1 percent, while those for the indices of masonry materials and tinsmithry materials posted flat growth during the month.

Month-on-month, upward adjustments were registered in the prices of plywood, machine bolt and nuts, wiring devices, cement and hollow blocks, sand paper, faucet, G.I. pipes and steel bars.