Cement, iron rods prices remain high despite inflation decline

Building material prices in Nigeria have seen significant increases. Cement and iron rods, also called reinforcement, stand out here. Since the first half of this year, the price of cement has remained high at an average of N10,000 per 50kg bag.

This runs counter to the decline in the inflation rate, which is often blamed for the persistent rise in commodity prices generally.

Nigeria’s inflation rate declined for the fifth consecutive time to 20.12 percent in August, down from 21.88 percent in July 2025. This is according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) August Consumer Price Index and inflation rate data released last week, Monday.

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BusinessDay findings show that, as at Friday last week, the Dangote brand of cement sold for N10,200 per 50kg bag while Lafarge and Elephant brands sold for N10,000 apiece. These were the prices in the Ojo and Surulere areas of Lagos.

In Enugu, South East Nigeria, prices range from N10,200 to N10,500, depending on brand and location, according to Samuel Chinwendu, a dealer, who spoke with our reporter.

Sebastin Ovie, a building materials seller in Ojo, told our reporter that the prices of iron rods have been relatively stable. According to him, one length of 12mm rod sells for N9,500 and N12,500 for the local and imported brands, respectively.

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Our findings also reveal that, though they are still high relative to the purported inflation rate decline, building materials prices have been stable all in the last six months as shown in the prices of sand and granite still sold for N50,000 and N60,000 per ton, respectively.

Essentially, building material prices are driven by factors such as currency depreciation, increased demand from large-scale infrastructure projects, and swings in the rate of inflation.