Builders’ merchants’ sales have been generally falling for two years now. April saw a slight uplift, year on year, but only because there were more trading days in April 2024 than in April 2023.
May saw a return to the familiar trend of falling sales.
However, while May’s sales were down compared to the same month in 2023, they were better than April’s results.
May’s takings were 3.0% higher than April while sales volumes increased by 2.2%. Prices were up by 0.8% on the month and by 2.0% on the year.
Across the first five months of 2024, sales were 4.5% down on the first five months of 2023.
In the 12 months from June 2023 to May 2024 total takings were 4.5% lower than the same period the year before (June 2022 to May 2023) and sales volumes slumped by 8.9%. Prices rose by 4.8%. With six extra trading days in the most recent 12-month period, like-for-like takings were down by 6.8%.
Mike Rigby, managing director of MRA Research which produces the BMBI report said: “May was positive for UK construction as better weather saw trades getting back on site. Monthly construction output returned to growth (up 1.9%) after a fall in April, according to the latest ONS data. All bar one construction sector picked up in May, including new housing (up 2.8%) although from a low base. However, growth in new build and residential RMI has yet to feed through to merchants, where volumes continued to fall.”
