While building material prices continued to rise in the UAE capital, Abu Dhabi, during September compared to the same month a year ago, concrete and aggregate prices registered an increase MoM.

Statistics Centre Abu Dhabi (Scad) said in its latest monthly report that concrete prices fell 11.9 per cent in September, compared to a month earlier. However, during the month prices of construction labour, paints, aggregates and sand rose compared to August.

The largest rise during September, compared to August, was recorded in transport equipment rents, which shot up 37.7 per cent on year. The next largest rise was in the prices of wire for apartments, which rose 27.1 per cent as a result of an increase in the price of electrical wire.

"Prices of building materials are rising because of an increase in prices of building materials in the country of their origin. It may also be due to retailers increasing their prices to increase their profit margins," Mohammad Amerah, an Abu Dhabi-based economist, told Gulf News.