Expert comments
There were no big surprises in Q4 2024, as a steady but cautious steel lintels market recorded consistent overall tonnage, with the usual seasonal drop off in November and December… Read more
Expert comments
The final quarter of 2024 presented challenges for the UK construction and housebuilding sectors, but it also highlighted opportunities for growth and transformation. UK construction output data from the ONS… Read more
Expert comments
2024 fizzled out with slow paving sales in the last quarter, but prospects for 2025 are already looking up as the pre-season gets off to a flying start. What goes… Read more
Expert comments
In Q3 2024 the construction industry looked for tangible short-medium term government assistance to boost the supply and demand of residential home building. For example, some quick win stimuli to… Read more
Expert comments
Unfortunately, Quarter Three continued to exhibit the sluggish market conditions that were carried over from the first half of the year. House builders and independent merchants remain gloomy about the… Read more
Expert comments
The success of any e-commerce strategy hinges on the foundation of accurate, detailed, and standardised product data. For retailers like Kingfisher, which aims to derive 30% of its revenue from… Read more
Expert comments
Since our last update, the UK Government has delivered their Autumn Budget. In doing so, they have managed to deflate confidence with new fiscal rules that seem to have pleased… Read more
Expert comments
In the third quarter, the trade paint market showed signs of recovery, with the Moving Annual Total (MAT) growth improving to -1.5%. This was largely driven by a +1.6% year-on-year… Read more
Expert comments
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. With… Read more
Expert comments
While we were hopeful of a lift in demand in Q3, the market slowed again and we have seen a notable flattening in volumes for cement and aggregate products. The… Read more
Launched in 2015, the award winning monthly Builders Merchant Building Index (BMBI) report is the only reliable measure of repair, maintenance & improvement (RMI) activity in the UK. Filling an important gap, it can be widely used in construction, and by economists, Government, national media, commentators and influencers outside the industry.
