Builders materials and DIY group Grafton has said trading has been in line with expectations in the first half of the year with revenue up 3.2% to £1.19 billion.
In a trading update, Grafton said its Woodie's DIY business in Ireland performed strongly - with revenue up around 3% - driven by demand for seasonal products.
However, it said Chadwicks saw lower demand for materials supplied for housing RMI (refurbishment, maintenance and improvement) projects and the construction of single homes.
Grafton said that first half volumes were lower in the distribution businesses in Ireland, the UK and Finland due to the impact of the cost-of-living increases and rising interest rates.
They were broadly unchanged in the Netherlands, it added.
Lower volumes and sharp falls in timber and steel prices also contributed to more competitive markets and margin pressure in the distribution businesses in Ireland and the UK.
It said the Selco business in the UK continued to see challenging trading conditions in the residential RMI market as people cut investment on home improvements and discretionary spending on repairs and maintenance.
Revenue growth in the Netherlands was driven by product price inflation, increased sales to collect customers operating in the RMI market and key account customers engaged on large commercial construction projects.
Meanwhile, average daily like-for-like revenue in Finland was marginally down due to a softening in demand on the back of a decline in residential and non-residential construction.
Grafton said that while it will closely monitor the heightened macroeconomic uncertainty and the risks to the downside in the residential RMI and new build markets from cost-of-living pressures and successive interest rises, it continues to anticipate delivering full year operating profit in line with expectations based on current trading conditions.
Eric Born, the chief executive of Grafton Group, said the company achieved a resilient first half trading performance against the backdrop of challenging market conditions and a strong prior year comparator.
"We are maintaining our guidance for the year while mindful of the potential impact of the macro-economic environment on trading," the CEO said.
"Our management teams' focus in the second half will be on supporting customers in our market leading businesses, tightly managing the cost base and responding quickly to evolving trading conditions," he added.
The group will publish interim results at the end of August.
