Building cost inflation steady at 2.2% in April despite monthly rise

Building cost inflation remained unchanged at 2.2 percent in April 2026, although prices of construction inputs increased more sharply on a month-on-month basis, according to the latest Prime Building Cost Index (PBCI) released by the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS).

The report showed that the PBCI rose to 136.1 in April 2026 from 133.2 recorded in April 2025, translating into a year-on-year inflation rate of 2.2 percent. The rate was unchanged from the 2.2 percent recorded in March 2026 but marked a sharp decline from the 24.4 percent recorded in April 2025.

On a monthly basis, however, the overall price level of building inputs increased by 1.5 percent between March and April 2026, higher than the 0.8 percent month-on-month increase recorded in March.

The increase reflected higher prices across materials, labour and plant categories used in the construction sector.

Year-on-year materials inflation increased marginally to 2.4 percent in April from 2.3 percent in March, while month-on-month materials inflation rose to 1.7 percent from 1.3 percent over the same period.

Labour inflation, on the other hand, slowed to 1.0 percent year-on-year in April from 1.6 percent in March. Month-on-month labour inflation, however, increased to 0.8 percent from a contraction of 0.4 percent recorded previously.

Plant inflation recorded the highest year-on-year inflation rate among the three major groups, rising to 4.7 percent in April from 2.6 percent in March. Month-on-month plant inflation also rose to 1.8 percent from 1.0 percent.

At the sub-group level, glazing recorded the highest year-on-year inflation rate of 16.2 percent, followed by plumbing at 14.5 percent and roofing sheets at 13.0 percent.

Electrical works remained the largest contributor to overall building inflation, accounting for 52.8 percent of total inflation contribution, despite a slight decline in its inflation rate from 11.6 percent in March to 11.5 percent in April.

Other major contributors included glazing, which contributed 37.4 percent, metalwork at 23.0 percent and plumbing at 22.3 percent.

In contrast, cement continued to record deflation, posting the lowest inflation rate of minus 11.2 percent year-on-year. Steel also recorded negative inflation of minus 3.6 percent, while fine aggregate fell by 8.7 percent.

GSS said the relatively low overall building inflation offers an opportunity for households, businesses and government to plan construction spending more strategically.

The statistical service advised households planning construction projects to phase their activities, purchase lower-priced materials such as cement and steel early, and budget carefully for high-inflation inputs including glazing, plumbing and roofing sheets.

It also urged contractors and developers to regularly review bids and secure medium-term supply contracts for volatile materials, particularly electrical works, glazing, plumbing, metalwork and skilled labour, which continue to exert pressure on construction costs.

Government, it added, should accelerate infrastructure spending while overall building inflation remains subdued, address supply bottlenecks in key construction materials and expand artisan and technical training to help contain labour-cost pressures.