Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free
Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.
UK building merchant Travis Perkins has warned its annual profits will be far lower than forecast as a slowdown in the construction sector bites, sending shares in the group down 12 per cent.
The company said on Wednesday that its operating profits for the year would be between £175mn and £195mn, down from the £240mn it had forecast as recently as August.
The warning is the latest evidence of the weakness in the UK housing market and wider construction industry. Last month, Kingfisher, the home improvement retailer that owns brands including B&Q, said pre-tax profits would be lower than expected. Ferguson, the UK-based plumbing equipment supplier, meanwhile, recently blamed “challenging” markets for deepening job cuts.
Nick Roberts, chief executive of Travis Perkins, said the downward pressure on pricing was more severe than it had expected.
“[This] has impacted on our trading margins and is reflected in today’s revised guidance,” the company added.
