Job losses loom for Atkins staff

WS Atkins admitted yesterday it is cutting staff numbers in the UK after reductions in government spending affected its highways business. The engineer, which works on major construction projects including the London 2012 Olympics site, also said that trading conditions had been difficult in Ireland and Portugal but that good opportunities existed in Scandinavia for its European business.

In an update covering the period since October, Atkins said that transport infrastructure work in Hong Kong and improving business in mainland China have pushed Asia Pacific trading ahead of expectations. Trading in North America and its energy business was steady and is improving in the Middle East, it added.