Housing woes hit Grafton profits

Revenue for the six months to the end of June fell to 990 million euros (853 million pounds) from 1.4 billion euros in the same period of 2008, Grafton said, adding that turnover had stabilised since April.

Profits from its UK operations and from investment and property sales broadly offset losses in Ireland, restructuring costs and interest charges in the first half, it said.

"The group has now entered the seasonally stronger trading period of the second half of the year during which it expects to return to modest levels of profitable trading," said Grafton, which owns builders' and plumbers' merchants in the UK and Ireland.

(Reporting by Andras Gergely; Editing by Greg Mahlich)