Kingspan warns profit to fall by a third

Insulated panel manufacturer Kingspan has predicted a 33% fall in profits following a further slump in the UK and Irish construction markets.

The company added that it would take a £21m hit in one-off restructuring costs this year.

It reported that group sales are down 9% in the ten months to 31 October 2008 compared to the same period in the previous year.

Insulated panel sales are down 6% for the first ten months to 31 October on a constant currency basis.

Of this, the UK and Ireland were down 16% but overall figures were lifted by western, central and eastern Europe.