Ibstock swings to first-half loss on coronavirus lockdowns

(Sharecast News) - Brickmaker Ibstock swung to a first-half loss as the coronavirus lockdowns halted building activity, but reported a pickup in July after government restrictions were eased.
The company on Thursday reported pre-tax losses of £52m for the six months to June 30 compared with a profit of £41m a year ago.

It said the loss reflected weaker adjusted performance and non-underlying costs of £41m related to Covid-19 and restructuring.

Ibstock said it had seen continued recovery in demand patterns in July, with clay sales volumes at around 80% and concrete sales volumes at around 85% of prior year levels.

Clay sales volumes recovered to around 60% of prior year levels in June, from 10% in April, with recovery in the merchant channel outpacing house builder volumes

The company warned it was still difficult to predict outturn for the year "given significant COVID-19 uncertainty".

Chief executive Joe Hudson said fundamentals for Ibstock's markets remain positive, "with a substantial housing deficit in the UK and government policy which is supportive of the role the construction sector will play in the UK economic recovery".

"The action we have taken to strengthen the business and improve liquidity, including measures to reduce costs and restructure our operations, provide further flexibility and position us well both to meet current challenges and benefit from recovery in our core markets," he said.