British equipment hire group Ashtead, which makes 85 percent of its revenue from U.S. division Sunbelt, posted record first-half profit as U.S. construction firms, struggling to secure credit to buy expensive diggers and tools, rented them instead.
The company said it had seen a modest pickup in the U.S. construction market in the last quarter.
However, the need to reduce the country's deficit remains a concern for customers and the firm said that even if the market did recover more strongly, there were signs of lasting switch towards renting equipment rather than buying it.