Travis Perkins admits it can't see way back into growth

Travis Perkins today reported a sharp fall in profits and warned there was "no clear indication" of when things will pick up, sending its shares down more than six per cent.

Profits dived 11.1 per cent to £180 million in 2009 in what chief executive Geoff Cooper described as "the most difficult conditions in the group's history".

Shares in the builders' merchant, owner of Wickes, fell 47.5p to 703p.

Cooper said: "At this stage there is no clear indication of when our markets might return to growth again.

"Although we believe this might be evident by the end of 2010, we are also wary of the probable false starts that we expect to see."