Travis Perkins sees slower July sales in wake of Brexit vote

Travis Perkins said like-for-like sales in July had been below normal levels in the wake of the UK's decision to leave the European Union as it posted a 10.7% rise in interim profits to £176m.

Revenues at the builders merchant rose by 5.8% to £31.bn, while like-for-like sales grew by 3.1%.

“It is clear that the result of the EU referendum has created significant uncertainty in the outlook for our end markets and we did experience weaker demand in the run up to and immediately following the referendum,” the company said.

“Our two-year like-for-like sales in July have been below the levels we experienced in the second quarter, however we have seen a gradual improvement through the course of the month. In our view it is too early to precisely predict end market demand and we will continue to monitor the lead indicators we track and will react accordingly.”

The earliest signs from the lead indicators the group tracks have been mixed and the Group is therefore taking a more cautious stance to end market demand in Q4 2016 and 2017.”