Ashtead chief executive Brendan Horgan said he expected the equipment group to be able to take advantage of supply chain constraints for another 18 months as more companies have opted to rent machinery because of the lack of supply for sale.
The FTSE 100 company hires out scaffolding, excavators and other equipment and has benefited from disruption in supply chains, which have made it harder for businesses to source such goods.
Ashtead said on Tuesday that revenue was up by a fifth in the year to the end of April, at $8bn and profit before tax rose by 35 per cent to $1.7bn.
The Covid-19 pandemic and lockdowns disrupted global trade, causing component shortages and logistical bottlenecks, which have hit the production of equipment across industries.
Horgan said problems with supply chains and the delivery of goods were still big concerns for the world economy. “When it comes to the economy, the world is worried about three things: supply chain constraints, inflation and…