British building materials supplier Wolseley said full-year trading profit before exceptional items would beat forecasts if current trends continued, mainly due to better than expected cost efficiencies.
'The economic environment continues to provide limited visibility and demand is not consistent across our business units,' Wolseley said today.
Last month, Wolseley sold its businesses in the Republic of Ireland and the Brooks business in Northern Ireland to a group of private investors for a total of €26.5m in cash.
The deal covers Brooks, Heat Merchants, Tubs & Tiles and Encon in the Republic of Ireland and the Brooks business in Northern Ireland.
Analysts' forecast was for a profit of £326m sterling for the year to the end of July, the company said. It is due to announce results for the six months to the end of January on March 22.
