Grafton CFO Braces for Labour Budget as UK Recovery ‘Unlikely’

Building materials supplier Grafton Group Plc said speculation around the upcoming UK budget — and the potential impact on the country’s property market — makes a meaningful recovery of the home improvement market unlikely.

“Sadly from an industry perspective, the various rhetoric that we’re seeing at the moment around taxes, wealth taxes, particularly aimed at property, are unhelpful,” Chief Financial Officer David Arnold said. “That makes us a little bit more cautious until we get to the budget and we actually see what the intentions of the chancellor are.”