Sales of building materials fell by 4.4% in the last three months of 2007 compared to a year ago, according to new figures.
The Builders Merchants Federation (BMF), which released the figures, said the “disappointing” dip mirrored the end of year housing slowdown.
The BMF’s report, which gathers information from builders merchants across the UK, shows a consistent picture of sales falls across most regions.
Heavyside materials fared best with a 2.6% rise during the fourth quarter, while lightside fell by 0.4% and mixed stock merchants saw their sales decline by 7.7%.
“The volatility in sales that has been evident throughout 2007 continued in the final quarter of the year,” said BMF secretary Peter Matthews.
“Whilst we would expect sales to to fall in the run up to the year end, it is disappointing that sales have fallen against the same period in 2006.”
