UK-based Ashtead reports unexpectedly low profits due to $2 billion charge and struggling US operations.

A recent handout photo from the Ashtead Group showcases an example of the Sunbelt Rentals hire equipment. The London-listed company has cited various reasons for its downbeat outlook, including a quieter hurricane season and fewer naturally occurring events such as wildfires. Ashtead, which competes with United Rentals in the U.S., serves construction, emergency response, and entertainment markets in the U.S., UK, and Canada, renting out equipment from diggers to construction tools.

The impact of the Hollywood actors’ and writer’s strikes affected its film and television business in Canada and had some impact on the rest of the Canadian, U.S., and UK businesses that rent into that space. Despite this, Ashtead expects its annual profit to come in below market expectations because of the lower emergency response activity and a more than $2 billion depreciation charge for the year. The company has lowered its annual group and U.S. rental revenue growth forecast and said net interest costs would amount to about $540 million for the year.