Kier Group sees markets improving

17th Sep 2009 07:29

Building and civil engineering contractor Kier Group reported annual pre-tax profit of £24.8m down from last year's figure of £63.4m but there are signs that its markets are improving.The group took write-downs of £49.8m while it added a £27.3m credit from its retirement scheme. Revenue for the year ended 30 June 2009 was down 10% at £2.1bn. Commenting on the results chief executive John Dodds said, "The new financial year has started well. The current economic climate will, no doubt, present us with many challenges however our businesses are financially strong...Whilst the current markets for our developments business remain tough, they are beginning to show signs of improvement and we have a number of excellent long-term projects which will provide considerable value for the future."Kier said it has £2.2bn of secure and probable orders at its construction unit while its support services business has £2.3bn worth of orders. The full year dividend has been maintained at 55.0p.