Comparative Study of Price Variations of Basic Civil Engineering Construction Materials

A study of varying prices of basic civil engineering construction materials was undertaken. The basic materials considered were two varieties of cement, three types of sand, and different sizes of two types of timber. Prices of these construction materials were collected from local Contractors in Oshogbo region over a period of twenty seven months. The period considered was from January 2010 to March 2012. Variation pattern in the prices was studied on monthly basis. Results indicate that prices of all the basic construction materials follow an annual cyclic pattern. Prices of the two brands of Cement were the same except at months 12, 23 and 24. The prices are stable from April to August of each year (months 4-8, and 16-20). During these periods the price of this material increased by 13.3% from ?1,500.00 in 2010 to ?1,700.00 in 2011. There were two rises per annum in the prices of sand. The first rise occurred in March and the second in the following November for sharp and fine sands. Timber prices are relatively stable within 5% variability during the months of November – March and December – March respectively for hardwood and whitewood except types H4 and W1. H4 and W1 prices were the same and they followed the same trend. The trends presented by types H4 and H5, which are same size but different species, are similar, indicating that hardwood specie is not a factor in the price variation of timbers. It can generally be concluded that the prices of the basic construction materials will stabilize during the months of April to August of every year. Although construction activities are light every January, January prices keep increasing from year to year.