The rise in interest rates for a second month in a row has not proved to be a great concern for companies in the timber sector, with market fundamentals remaining strong.
David Moody, sales and marketing director of Wolseley UK, welcomed the gradual rise in interest rates to 4.5% because he said it gave business time to respond.
He added: “It’s not really that dramatic. Building work continues to need to be done and construction of new homes is needed to solve a demographic shortage of housing. Most of our customers are reporting strong order books for the rest of the year.”
Naomal Wijesooriya, finance director of Finnforest UK, was unsure if the latest rise would cool the housing market or consumer spending because he thought the previous three increases had not seemed to have any effect.
He said: “I am surprised that they increased it so soon. I thought they would have given it more time.”
Nick Howarth, managing director of Howarth Timber Group Ltd, said: “The Bank of England needs to be cautious. It sometimes takes as long as a year for interest rates to kick in.”
He said the housing market had already started to cool in the south-east and London.
