Not up to expectations

The DIY stores and builders’ merchants in Germany achieved sales of € 9.019 bn in the first half of 2004, which amounts to a like-for-like increase of 0.6 per cent over the same period in 2003. The BHB reports that the figures overall remained below what had been expected by the traders. The first-half report also says that business in the garden sector has so far been disappointing for the industry. Questions put to members of the association reveal that there was an overall deficit of six per cent throughout all the garden ranges.