Insulation and building materials manufacturer Kingspan said that group sales of almost €2 billion for the three months to the end of March were 1% lower than the same time last year.
The Co Cavan-based company added that it saw a "reasonable" first quarter despite a sluggish start to the year due in part to seasonal factors.
In a trading update ahead of its AGM in Dublin today, Kingspan said that trading volumes overall have been positive with pricing stable since the turn of the year.
But trading is lower on an annual basis due to lower raw material prices and Kingpin said it is possible that its primary input costs could rise again in the near term.
Kingspan said its operations in the Americas matched last year's strong start, while Western Europe was seasonally subdued for the most part, and was slow to get going.
It added that its operations in Central & Eastern Europe remained regionally tough, while the Middle East and India recorded strong sales growth in the first quarter.
Kingspan said its Board will today propose a share buyback programme of 1.5 million ordinary shares, which will start after today's AGM subject to market conditions
Looking ahead, Kingspan said its trading outlook as it moves through the early part of the second quarter remains encouraging overall.
"The positive trends seen in order intake for much of 2023 have continued into 2024. Order intake volumes in each month of 2024 to date have been stronger than the same month last year," the company said.
"Year-on-year pricing levels ought to more closely match as we approach the mid-year period. With much of the second quarter remaining we expect to deliver a broadly similar trading profit in the first half as we did in the same period in 2023," it added.
Shares in the company moved higher in Dublin trade today.
