The latest Builders Merchant Building Index (BMBI) report, published in June, shows April’s total like-for-like value sales (adjusted to remove the effect of trading days) were -0.6% lower than the same month in 2025. Like-for-like volume sales were down -3.5% with prices up +3.0%.

With no difference in trading days, total unadjusted value sales were also -0.6% lower, with volumes down -3.5%. By value, just three of the twelve categories sold more: Services (+7.0%), Timber & Joinery (+1.6%) and Miscelllaneous (+0.2%). Renewables & Water Saving (-6.6%), Workwear & Safetywear (-4.6%) and Heavy Building Materials (-1.9%) saw the largest declines.

In the three months February to April 2026, like-for-like value sales were -2.8% lower compared to the same three months in 2025. Like-for-like volume sales were down -7.1% with prices increasing +4.7%. With one extra trading day in the most recent three-month period, unadjusted value sales were down -1.2%, with volumes down -5.6% and prices up +4.7%. By value, eight categories sold more, led by Renewables & Water Saving (+8.9%). Of the two largest categories, Timber & Joinery Products (+2.1%) performed better than Total Builders Merchants, while Heavy Building Materials (-3.8%) was the weakest category.

In the 12 months May 2025 to April 2026, like-for-like value sales were down -0.7% compared to the previous 12-month period (May 2024 to April 2025). With no difference in trading days, unadjusted volume sales fell -2.0% while prices increased +1.3%. By value, eight categories sold more, led again by Renewables & Water Saving (+7.8%). Of the two largest categories, Timber and Joinery Products grew more slowly (+2.2%) while Heavy Building Materials (-2.9%) was the weakest category.

In the year to date (January to April 2026), like-for-like value sales were -2.5% lower than the first four months of 2025, but like-for-like volume sales were down -6.9% and prices were up +4.7%. There was no difference in trading days. By unadjusted value, seven categories sold more with Renewables & Water Saving (+8.8%) growing more than the others.

Mike Rigby, Managing Director of MRA Research which produces the BMBI report says: “So far, 2026 has been a series of surprises, mostly unwelcome. Now, as we reach the midpoint of the year, what we want is what we were led to expect: positive signs of consistent growth. But this may be some way off. On the negative side of the ledger, new home registrations were down -6% in Q1 as rising costs and falling demand created poor market conditions for developers, with eight out of 12 regions seeing a decline.

“Real estate companies (estate agents, landowners and estate management companies) are going bust at the fastest rate seen in the last 10 years as the UK’s property market takes a battering. Since the start of the year, 762 property related businesses have become insolvent in the UK. That’s more than 60 per cent up on last year as the Iran war stifles consumer confidence and adds to building costs.

“And there’s no mitigating the turmoil and uncertainty at the heart of Government.

“But on the sunny side of the ledger, the US-Iranian war, and maybe even the Middle East war, seems to be coming to an end. It’s an unpopular war even in the US, so now he has a face-saving exit President Trump will be keen to move on. Assuming Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu doesn’t torpedo the peace, oil and gas prices will drop, the inflation spike will be short lived and the prospects for growth will rise. True, it will take months for ships to get to where they should be and for stocks to be rebuilt, and years to repair or rebuild some infrastructure, but this appears to be a very positive turning point.

“The latest GfK Consumer Confidence Index suggests things are starting to improve too. The May index was two points up to -23, with the mood lifting for personal finances and the economic outlook. However, the Major Purchase Index, indicative of intended spend on repair, maintenance and improvement (RMI), was down -2 points to -20, and the Savings Index dropped a remarkable -10 points. People are feeling the pinch and using savings to prop up day-to-day spending.”

Set up and run by MRA Research, the BMBI – a brand of the Builders Merchants Federation – is a monthly index of builders’ merchant sales, and the most reliable, up-to-date measure of Repair, Maintenance, and Improvement (RMI) activity in the UK. The index is based on actual sales from NiQ GfK’s Builders’ Merchant Point of Sale Tracking Data, which captures value sales out to builders from generalist builders’ merchants, accounting for 88% of total sales from builders’ merchants throughout Great Britain. An in-depth review, which includes commentary by sector experts, is provided each quarter.