Grafton Group PLC on Thursday blamed the poor weather as it reported a drop in sales in the year so far.

Shares in Grafton, the Dublin-based building materials distributor and DIY retailer, fell 3.3% to 907.60 pence in London on Thursday.

Grafton said revenue for the year to April 21 fell 5.0% to £669.2 million from £704.3 million. At constant currency revenue fell 3.3%.

Overall activity remained subdued in the period with average daily like-for-like revenue down by 4.5% on the prior year, Grafton added.

‘Softer trading in the seasonally less important early months of the year was influenced by prevailing macroeconomic conditions in the group’s individual markets and exceptionally wet weather in Ireland and the UK which impacted demand,’ Grafton said.

In Ireland, Chadwicks encountered materials price deflation of around 6.0% but continued to benefit from an improving trend in volumes and a favourable macroeconomic backdrop, Grafton said.

Demand conditions in the UK repair, maintenance and improvement market remained weak with materials price deflation of around 3.5% and adverse weather conditions also contributing to the decline in revenue, Grafton added.

In the Netherlands, lower revenue from smaller customers and timber factories was largely offset by revenue growth generated by large construction projects.

The slowdown in the Finnish economy and construction sector continued to impact volumes in IKH, the company noted.

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