Interserve expects stable 2012

Support services and construction group Interserve said trading from the start of January 2012 to date has been in line with company expectations and expects trading this year to be more stable than 2011.The group, whose clients include the NHS, Ministry of Justice, Sainsbury's and National Grid, said it has won more than £600m worth of new work, giving it improved revenue visibility of around £1.9bn for 2012 and £1.0bn for 2013.Chief Executive Adrian Ringrose commented, "We've had a good start to the year and are trading well in mixed market conditions. Our attractive global breadth of end markets in outsourcing and infrastructure, together with our strong financial position, underpins our strategic development potential."He added: "We continue to believe that trading in 2012 will be stable compared with 2011. We have continued to win significant contracts from new and existing clients and the business is benefitting from early actions taken to enhance efficiencies."Interserve said support services UK is progressing well with resilient performance in its core markets while support services international is trading well primarily through its activities in the Middle East petrochemical sector. Construction, both in the UK and internationally, continues to perform in-line with expectations despite challenging conditions and increased competition. Equipment Services continues to recover, led by encouraging market conditions in Australasia and the Far East. There are early signs of growth within the Middle East while Europe and North America remain subdued.Interserve said its acquisition of Business Employment Services Training delivering on strategy to increase capability in growth markets.CJ