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New data from the Department for Business and Trade and the Mineral Products Association highlight a long-term fall in demand for key construction materials according to BCIS chief economist Dr David Crosthwaite.
Records published DBT data, which date back to 2013, show annual deliveries of ready-mixed concrete hit a record low in 2025 while MPA data highlighted a 27% decrease in annual materials sales volumes in London. At the same time, brick and concrete block deliveries are falling as stocks climb.
Dr Crosthwaite claims that the data echoes the deepening demand crisis in construction’s residential market.
“Developers are stuck. They face decision-making holdups at regulatory and government levels, reduced buyer appetite and pressure from levies and rising building costs. It’s a recipe we’ve seen the result of time and again in delayed starts, site closures and missed housing targets.
“The greater concern is the long-term damage to domestic supply chains and whether manufacturers will be able to weather demand stagnation. Further reductions in supply chain capacity could be disastrous for national housing and infrastructure targets. How swiftly and how well measures like the government’s renegotiation of Section 106 agreements answer the severity of demand pressures, are of the utmost importance.”
