Wolseley Expresses Concern About The U.S. Housing Market

Sept. 28, 2007
Wolseley PLC, the world’s largest distributor of plumbing, heating and building products, said that sales for the fiscal year through June 30 rose 15 percent but expressed caution about the state of the U.S. housing market.

Wolseley PLC, the world’s largest distributor of plumbing, heating and building products, said that sales for the fiscal year through June 30 rose 15 percent but expressed caution about the state of the U.S. housing market.

Wolseley said there were no signs of an upturn in U.S. housing, while the repairs, maintenance and improvement market had also begun to soften. Wolseley’s North American subsidiaries include Ferguson Enterprises, Newport News, Va.; Stock Building Supply, Raleigh, N.C.; and Wolseley Canada.

“The commercial and industrial market should remain positive, albeit at lower rates of growth,” according to Wolseley’s Web site.

Last year, the group shed around 6,000 workers worldwide, with the bulk of the losses at Stock, where 3,500 jobs were lost and 46 branches were closed. Ferguson, its U.S. plumbing and heating unit, reduced its headcount by 1,500 last year, according to the Thomson Financial News Service.

Despite the cutbacks, since Aug. 1, Wolseley bought 41 businesses for a total $761 million. Those acquisitions are expected to add about 656 million to revenue in a full year. “We’re not ruling out further job losses or branch closures. We’ll get a clearer idea of where we are during September and October,” said Chris Hornsby, group chief executive.