CRH will continue to grow via acquisitions after thriving through the Covid storm

The building materials group has been remarkably unscathed by the global pandemic, with earnings rising 5% to $4.6bn

Group chief executive Albert Manifold said CRH’s acquisition model is not broken and that further bolt-on purchases are central to its growth strategy. Shane O'Neill / Fennells

Building materials giant CRH is prepared to spend big on acquisitions and return more cash to shareholders this year after coming through the mess that was 2020 remarkably unscathed and with a strengthened balance sheet.

CRH weathered the Covid storm remarkably well, last year, with earnings rising 5% to $4.6bn (€3.8bn) and group revenues only falling by 2% to $27.6bn. Pre-tax profit fell from $2.2bn to $1.7bn.