AMEC and WSP added to the black clouds gathering over the construction and support services sectors, by issuing warnings of a deteriorating market.
In a trading update, Amec warned that it had reduced its pre-tax profit expectations by 拢15m.

It said 20 projects worth more than 拢315m had been deferred, noting that its construction order book had fallen in value from 拢2bn to 拢1.8bn in the past six months.

WSP said pre-tax profit for the year to 31 December would not be less than 拢12m, 拢3.1m down on last year. WSP said: "Since the announcement of our interim results at the beginning of September we have experienced a continuing softening of the market, particularly in the private and commercial sectors in the UK, Sweden and the Far East." The firm's interim results showed a 1.6% increase in pre-tax profit.

A senior city analyst said that although Amec's Canadian engineering subsidiary Agra was performing poorly the rest of the business remained strong. He said: "The group is broadly based 鈥� three-quarters of it is trading well."

Amec also announced that it is to exercise an option to acquire 54% of French firm Spie for 拢172m. Amec chief executive Sir Peter Mason said: "This acquisition marks the five-year transformation of the company into a truly international engineering services group."