Year-on-Year

On an annual basis, the Construction Materials Retail Price Index (CMRPI) in the National Capital Region (NCR) went up by 2.6 percent in April 2018. Its annual growth in March 2018 was pegged at 2.3 percent and in April 2017, 1.5 percent. Higher annual increases were recorded in the indices of the following commodity groups:

• Carpentry Materials (3.6%);
• Electrical Materials (1.3%);
• Masonry Materials (3.1%);
• Plumbing Materials (1.4%); and
• Tinsmithry Materials (1.5%).

Meanwhile, the indices of painting materials and related compounds and miscellaneous construction materials exhibited annual rates of 1.5 percent and 8.1 percent, respectively (see Table 2).

Month-on-Month

Measured from a month ago level, the CMRPI in NCR further slowed down to 0.3 percent in April 2018. In the previous month, its growth was recorded at 0.4 percent. The miscellaneous construction materials index declined by 0.2 percent during the month. Moreover, increments in the indices of carpentry materials decelerated to 0.9 percent; masonry materials, 0.2 percent; painting materials and related compounds, 0.1 percent; and plumbing materials, 0.3 percent. On the other hand, electrical materials index and tinsmithry materials index retained their previous month’s rates of 0.2 percent and 0.1 percent, respectively (see Table 3).

Upward adjustments were seen in the prices of lumber, plywood, lawanit, common wire and finishing nails, hinges, lockset, electrical switch, cement, gravel, hollow blocks, G.I. pipes and corrugated G.I. sheets. These were however, tempered by lower prices noted in steel bars during the month.