Carl Taylor: Combined Building Supplies Co-Op CEO on the signs of recovery in the construction sector

There are tentative signs of recovery, as a troubled construction sector looks to turn the corner. 

A new report shows the sector generated $94 billion in revenue in the year to March, down slightly from $99 billion the year prior. 

Despite this, the report shows residential consents have levelled off, government infrastructure projects are restarting, and falling interest rates are supporting mortgage activity. 

Combined Building Supplies Co-Op CEO Carl Taylor told Mike Hosking the Government is doing everything it promised to do to help. 

He says he couldn't even get in front of the Construction Minister in the last government, but this government actually listens. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Some insight into our construction sector, which in some ways,
of course, has been the poster child for job losses
in the last couple of years. We're at a six
year low, sixteen thousand fewer jobs, total revenue down five
percent to ninety four billion. But but buckle up, they
think twenty six is recovery time. Carl Taylor's the CEO
of Combined Building Supplies co OP, and is back with us.
Carl morning, Good morning, Mike, how are you very well?

(00:20):
Thank you? Is this the bottom?

Speaker 2 (00:23):
I think we are at the bottom. It's certainly still
tough out there, like I've been mentioned to use for
quite a while now, But in fact, we actually surveyed
a lot of our members last month and fifty four
percent of them say the same. They're pretty steady. Was
thirty seven percent still slowing. So it's still pretty bleak.
But feels like we are on the bottom here.

Speaker 1 (00:42):
That the horizontal vertical thing that you guys deal with,
is there divergence in that when this twenty six vibe
comes around, are you building up or out or it
doesn't matter.

Speaker 2 (00:53):
It's a bit of everything, really. I mean, we're seeing
the civil sector certainly booming. There's a lot of specifically
down stairs at the infrastructure work going on, but residential
new housing I would have said, pretty pretty dead. Client
hesitation's probably still the biggest issue with a lot of
the members that I talk through. They've got clients that
just can't make up their mind whether they want to

(01:13):
spend some money or not. And if they are sp
any money, it appears to be back in that renovation
work still whe they're not having to quite spend as much.

Speaker 1 (01:21):
Nothing wrong with a good reno, though, Carl keeps.

Speaker 2 (01:25):
The economy flowing, keeps tills going.

Speaker 1 (01:27):
You had a good barthroom there. When you've got a
lot of joy in a bathroom, fully tiled bathroom, you
get a lot of pleasure out of that.

Speaker 2 (01:34):
Yes, it's still good spending. It's still money going to tell,
so any works good work. At the moment I think
to the guys.

Speaker 1 (01:39):
Do you have a definitive answer? Because this is politics
and I follow that very closely. So the argument is
this labor will tell you the procurement the pipelines rubbish,
and this government's canceled everything. The government will tell you
that the problem was the interest rates were too high
because the last lot buggered the place. What's true.

Speaker 2 (01:57):
Well, what I would say is the one thing that
government's done this time I think in our for our
sector is that they are doing everything they've promised to
do when they went into government. The last government I
couldn't even get in front of the construction minister, where
this one they actually listen. So I feel as if
they are doing what we require in the sector.

Speaker 1 (02:17):
Yeah, okay, so twenty six are you going to have problems?
Given sixteen thousand have left, I'm assuming many have gone
to places like Australia, You're going to have hiring troubles.

Speaker 2 (02:27):
Yeah, that's happening already. I think I was in Australia
only last week. It doesn't appear to be that much
greener there. The wages are certainly higher, travels more expensive,
so it's about the same. And believe it or not,
building costs I still sit around that two thousand and
four thousand. So yeah, there's going to be a problem,
but at least when it does crank back in, we're
going to have a long time to be able to

(02:47):
try and bring those people back or at least rehire again.

Speaker 1 (02:50):
Anyway, good stuff, Carl, Always a pleasure to have you
on the program, Carl Taylor, I don't think you brought
into my renovated bathroom thing quite as enthusiastically as I
was thinking.

Speaker 2 (02:58):
You get a lot of joy out of bathroom.

Speaker 1 (02:59):
I get mendus joy out of bathrooms at two thirty
in the morning. My floor is nice and warm, and
my tarwel rail's hot, and my my, my aged brass heads.
Look you hang on, hang on, hang on, hang on.

Speaker 2 (03:13):
I don't think we.

Speaker 1 (03:14):
It is sorry. Who was the construction minister? Posto and
Meghan Woods couldn't get in front of the construction minister Posto?
Williams and Meghan Woods, what a surprise.

Speaker 2 (03:26):
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