Construction firm Barratt has admitted its uncertainty about prospects for Britain's property market in 2007.
Issuing a trading update today ahead of its full-year results next month, Barratt confirmed a 2.9 per cent increase in annual completions in 2006 and a strong 47 per cent forward sales position.
It said that during 2006 selling price growth had been "constrained" by the "competitiveness of the market" and changes to its product mix, but insisted that it would be able to deliver a "robust operating margin" of profits despite these problems.
"With the key spring selling period still ahead of us, it is clearly too early to be certain of market trends for the rest of the year," Barratt said in its trading update.
"However, the fundamentals of the housing market remain sound and we expect it to continue to perform satisfactorily over the coming six months."
Also issuing a trading update today was construction sector rival Balfour Beatty, which delivered a more positive assessment of the forthcoming year.
It said that its order book grew by some 20 per cent to around £9 billion in 2006, while trading prospects for this year "remain positive" in the firm's key sectors.
Despite its upbeat statement, shares in Balfour Beatty dropped by 0.93 per cent on early morning trading while shares in Barratt rose by 0.33 per cent.
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