Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that the average daily wage of construction workers was MOP529 in the fourth quarter of 2009, up by 1.1% quarter-to-quarter. The average daily wage of skilled & semi-skilled workers (MOP566) rose by 0.7%, of which welders (MOP637), carpenters (MOP620) and structural iron erectors (MOP608) were earning higher average wages; meanwhile, the average daily wage of unskilled workers (MOP357) registered an increase of 2.0%. After discounting the effect of inflation, the wage index of construction workers for the fourth quarter of 2009 was 96.4 in real terms, down by 1.1% over the previous quarter. For the whole year of 2009, the average wage index of construction workers (97.3) declined by 2.3% year-on-year in real terms. As regards construction materials, the average price of concrete rose by 2.3% quarter-to-quarter to MOP311 per cubic metre, and that of spiral and round reinforcing steel bars increased slightly by 0.8% to MOP4,251 per tonne; however, the average price of cement registered a decrease of 1.8%, at MOP641 per tonne. In the fourth quarter of 2009, the price index of construction materials for residential buildings rose by 0.7% quarter-to-quarter to 126.6; in particular, the price indices of electric wires and concrete increased by 5.9% and 2.7% respectively, while the price indices of concrete pipe piles and pipes went down by 6.7% and 1.6%. Compared with the same quarter of 2008, the price index of construction materials for residential buildings registered a decrease of 9.3%. In 2009, the average price index of construction materials for residential buildings (125.2) decreased by 15.4% year-on-year.
