(Reuters) - Australian building materials maker Boral Ltd <BLD.AX> on Wednesday warned of a weaker fiscal 2020 first half amid project delays and a softer housing market.
Boral expects its earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) in the first half of the year to be around 5% lower than last year, while reaffirming its fiscal 2020 guidance.
"Early signs of the U.S. housing market improving are yet to flow through but should benefit results in the second half of the year," it said in a statement prepared for its annual general meeting.
The Sydney-based firm also expects to take an earnings hit of A$10 million ($6.90 million) in the first half, due to a disruptions and equipment failures at two of its local plants that impeded production.
The statement said that Boral's earnings at home and in North America in the first quarter were lower, without providing details.
Shares of Boral slipped as much as 4.3% in early trade, marking its biggest intraday percentage fall since Aug 26.
The Australian housing market is just beginning to creep out of a two-year downturn that chipped away at household wealth and confidence, and undermined consumption and business earnings.
Data earlier this month showed home prices rose for a fourth straight month in October, underscoring the boost from record-low interest rates and looser lending standards stoking demand.
"We have confidence that we can deliver a better outcome in the second half," Boral said, adding that it expected several major projects to ramp up during the period.
(Reporting by Shriya Ramakrishnan in Bengaluru; Editing by Chris Reese and Jane Wardell)
