Acquisition

Wolseley PLC
02 November 2005



NEWS RELEASE

2 November 2005



                                  Wolseley plc

       Acquisition update - £94 Million Spent on Two Further Acquisitions




Wolseley plc, the world's largest specialist trade distributor of plumbing and
heating products to professional contractors and a leading supplier of building
materials, announced today two further acquisitions.


Since the beginning of the financial year on 1 August 2005, a total of 13
distribution businesses in Europe and North America have been acquired for an
aggregate consideration of approximately £411 million in cash. These 13
acquisitions are expected to add approximately £652 million to group turnover in
a full year. Goodwill related to these acquisitions is estimated to be around
£262 million.



North American Plumbing and Heating Distribution


On 31 October 2005, Ferguson signed a conditional agreement with John H.
Frischkorn, Jr., Incorporated ('Frischkorn') and a shareholders representative
of the Frischkorn Employee Stock Ownership Plan ('ESOP'). This agreement is
conditional upon the approval of the members of the ESOP and the transaction is
expected to close on 30 November 2005. Frischkorn is a leading wholesale
distributor of industrial process piping components including pipe, valves and
fittings and related products and services to industrial markets in the
mid-Atlantic and Southeastern USA. Frischkorn has a branch network of 17
locations across six states and is headquartered in Richmond, Virginia. In the
year ended 31 October 2004, Frischkorn had sales of $85.5 million (£47.5
million) and had gross assets of $25.9 million (£14.4 million) at that date.



US Building Materials Distribution


On 1 November 2005, Stock Building Supply ('Stock') acquired the assets of
Seigle's, Inc. ('Seigle's') a leading distributor of building materials and
contractor services. Seigle's has 11 locations across Chicago and northern
Illinois through which it sells lumber, building materials, framing services and
value-added products such as components, millwork, windows and cabinetry, many
of which are installed. This acquisition complements Stock's existing operations
in Illinois and is the first entry into the Chicago area which is one of the
premier housing markets in the USA. In the year ended 31 December 2004, Seigle's
had sales of $257.8 million (£143.2 million) and had gross assets of $104.5
million (£50.1 million) at that date.






The divisional split of the total acquisition spend since 1 August 2005 is:

Division                                      No. of Acquisitions      Spend

                                                                     £ million

European Distribution                                            4         242
North American Plumbing & Heating                                8         102
Distribution
US Building Materials Distribution                               1          67
                                      TOTAL                     13         411






Charlie Banks, Group Chief Executive of Wolseley said:


'I am delighted to announce these new acquisitions which will further strengthen
our presence in North America. They support our strategy of growing the business
at double-digit rates through acquisition and organic growth.'






ENQUIRIES:


Investors/Analysts:

Guy Stainer                                                     0118 929 8744

Head of Investor Relations                                      07739 778 187

Press:

Penny Studholme                                                 0118 929 8886

Director of Corporate Communications


Brunswick                                                       020 7404 5959

Andrew Fenwick

Deborah Fairbrass




Exchange Rates


The following exchange rates have been used for the acquisitions noted above:

£1 = $1.80.




Certain statements included in this announcement may be forward-looking and may
involve risks, assumptions and uncertainties that could cause actual results to
differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward looking
statements. Forward-looking statements include, without limitation, projections
relating to results of operations and financial conditions and the Company's
plans and objectives for future operations including, without limitation,
discussions of the Company's business and financial plans, expected future
revenues and expenditures, investments and disposals, risks associated with
changes in economic conditions, the strength of the plumbing and heating and
building materials market in North America and Europe, fluctuations in product
prices and changes in exchange and interest rates. All forward-looking
statements in this respect are based upon information known to the Company on
the date of this announcement. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly
update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new
information, future events or otherwise. It is not reasonably possible to
itemise all of the many factors and events that could cause the Company's
forward-looking statements to be incorrect or that could otherwise have a
material adverse effect on the future operations or results of the Company.






Notes to Editors


Wolseley plc is the world's largest specialist trade distributor of plumbing and
heating products and a leading supplier of building materials to professional
contractors in North America, the UK and Continental Europe. Group sales for the
year ended 31 July 2005 were approximately £11.3 billion and operating profit,
before goodwill, was £721 million. Wolseley has around 60,000 employees
operating in 14 countries namely: UK, USA, France, Canada, Ireland, Italy, The
Netherlands, Switzerland, Austria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Belgium, Luxembourg
and Denmark. Wolseley is listed on the London and New York Stock Exchanges (LSE:
WOS.L, NYSE: WOS) and is in the FTSE 100 index of listed companies.


                                   -- ENDS --



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