New Zealand: Members of the building sector report that a local shortage in gypsum wallboard has started to ease. Christchurch-based Co-operative Building Supplies chair Carl Taylor told Radio New Zealand News, that since Winstone Wallboards announced a number of corrective measures in June 2022, supply had improved a "fair bit" but it was not back to levels seen before the Covid-19 pandemic started. Rick Herd, the chief executive officer of building company Naylor Love, added that Winstone Wallboards had increased its production but that a reduction in market demand had also helped.
In late September 2022, Winstone Wallboards’ general manager David Thomas thanked his customers for their patience. He added that the company was getting closer to levelling up supply with demand for wallboard across the country. Parent company Fletcher Building Materials previously said that it expected the market to stabilise by October 2022. Winstone Wallboards’ GIB product range is the main brand of wallboard used in New Zealand. The company is reported to hold around a 95% share of the local market.
