Travis Perkins sales rise, broader market slowing

LONDON, May 13 (Reuters) - British building materials group Travis Perkins Plc (TPK.L: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) reported a 6.8 percent rise in four-month sales and said on Tuesday its markets continued to slow.

"Our business has made good progress in the first four months of 2008 in markets that have, as anticipated, continued the slowdown which started in the last quarter of 2007", Chairman Tim Stevenson said in a trading update for the annual shareholders meeting.

Travis Perkins said total turnover in the merchanting division rose 8.2 percent in the first four months of 2008 on the back of 3.0 percent like-for-like growth, while the retail division achieved a 3.3 percent rise in sales. (Reporting by Johannes Hellstrom)