Balfour Beatty The country's biggest construction company said underlying pretax profit rose 7pc to £267m last year, beating a forecast of City analysts of £266m. The company, whose activities span engineering, construction, road and rail transport, said its order book rose 10pc year-on-year to £14.1bn. "The breadth of our portfolio means our business is resilient," Ian Tyler, the chief executive said.   Related Articles Balfour Beatty is a good Buffett-style bet Share tips: buy Prudential, sell Wolseley Record order book gives Costain confidence in 2009 Balfour profits boosted by public projects Serco sees profit rise 19pc as outlook remains strong Liberty in limelight after fundraising talk Balfour is trying to position itself to benefit from the US stimulus in 2010, shielding it from less public spending at home, which is anticipated after the general election. The company's UK operations now account for about half of its business, compared with about 80 percent four years ago.[Read more...]