BCF Survey Finds Confidence in Coatings Industry Climbs to Highest Level in Two Years
COVENTRY, England — The coatings industry, which includes decorative paints, industrial coatings, printing inks and wallcoverings, has seen business confidence continue to improve as the economy recovers, according to the British Coatings Federation’s (BCF) latest survey results. The BCF business confidence index figure is now 70.4, compared to 63.5 when the survey was conducted in the fall of last year, and 61.6 in the last survey conducted pre-COVID-19, in the fall of 2019. This contrasts with June 2020, when business confidence was at rock bottom during the first lockdown, with a BCF index of only 37.1.
According to the survey, the first five months of 2021 have delivered excellent sales results in both decorative and industrial coatings, caused by continued strong consumer demand for DIY products including paints and wallcoverings, and a buoyant manufacturing and construction industry recovery. Overall, UK paints and coatings sales were 24% higher than the same period in 2020.