The Builders Merchant Building Index (BMBI) results for Quarter 2 2020 show the phenomenal resilience of the sector in action: April, May and June couldn’t have been more different.
April fell -76.5% year-on-year as the UK was in almost full lockdown, while May recovered to -39.9% as restrictions started to ease, and June grew +2.2%, helped by two more trading days this year, more relaxed restrictions and a booming Landscaping category.
Year-on-year
Total Builders Merchants value sales in Q2 2020 (unadjusted for trading days) fell -38.6% compared with the same period in 2019.
Landscaping was the strongest performer, down -13.3% over the same period. The two largest product categories – Heavy Building Materials and Timber & Joinery Products – fell -38.4% and -39.8% respectively. Tools was weakest (-58.6%), followed by Kitchens & Bathrooms (-57.9%) and Plumbing, Heating & Electrical (-53.1%).
Quarter-on-quarter
Total value sales dropped by -27.2% in Q2 2020 compared with the previous quarter. All categories declined except for Landscaping (+38.7%). Heavy Building Materials was down -26.7%.
Index
The quarterly BMBI index for Total Builders Merchants was 76.4, with Heavy Building Materials at 75.1. Landscaping was ahead of all categories with an index of 138.8.
More details about the BMBI can be found online at https://www.bmbi.co.uk/the-index
