Demand in the fastener and fixings sector has continued to follow the general trends across merchants, with soft demand driven by the sluggish levels of construction and RM&I activity. In spite of announcements by the Houthi rebels in Yemen on the back of the Israeli/Hamas ceasefire that they would not attack non-Israeli shipping, most container lines have decided to continue with the Cape of Good Hope route. With this supply chain stabilised, supplies continue to be stable both in terms of availability and pricing.

Following the election of Donald Trump in the US, the tariff situation is changing rapidly. At the time of writing, the impacts of US tariffs on the supply chain are yet to be fully understood. Increased tariffs on Chinese products may result in some shifting of production to other Far East sources, which, in turn, may affect sourcing for the UK.  Given the extended supply chains for Far East sourced fasteners and fixings, we remain confident that these potential disruptions will not lead to major problems for UK supply.

Consultation is continuing on the introduction of a Carbon Border Adjustment Measure (CBAM) for the UK. This is currently planned for January 2027 and will levy a tax on imports of products with high embedded carbon content. In spite of lobbying to have downstream products, including fasteners and fixings excluded, as they do not form part of the Emissions Trading Scheme, it seems likely that they will be included and given that most are imported, it will result in higher prices in the UK. UK steel manufacturers are being very vocal in their support for these measures and are seeking as high levies as possible to be introduced even earlier.