Macro Economic Variable and Prices of Some Selected Building Construction Materials in Nigeria (1987-1996)

Abstract

In this study an attempt was made to examine the possibilities of using macro economic variables such as Gross Domestic Products (GDP) to predict the likely cost of building materials, field and published data were obtained for price trends of selected building materials and building/construction component of the GDP respectively for the period 1987-1996. Field data on the selected materials were obtained from six different zones of the country and the results were adequately weighted statistically, using simple Regression Analysis as a statistical instrument, the percentage changes in the GDP (as contributed by building and construction sector) versus percentage changes in weighted annual prices of various materials were studied. The results showed a significant relationship, with a coefficient of determination (R-square) value of 96.34% and a confidence limit of 0.0293. The study concluded that there is a strong statistical relationship between percentage changes in GDP (as contributed by the building/construction sector) and the percentage changes in the prices of some selected construction components.