It was the turn of Redrow and Galliford Try to line up and take their punishment this week.

Both put out profit warnings on Tuesday and both watched their share price head south as the day wore on. Investors are clearly unconvinced the worst is over and analysts were quick to start slashing their profit forecasts.

By the afternoon Galliford Try had fallen 5% to 55p, reducing the fictional £100 punt we made at the end of February to £79. Redrow slumped 8% to 270p, which reduced it to £88.

Neil Fitzsimmons, the chief executive of Redrow, resisted the temptation to take a swipe at the media for whipping up mass hysteria among house buyers and instead blamed the lack of mortgage availability. It got seven mentions in the nine-paragraph statement.

Elsewhere, groundwork specialist Keller made some encouraging noises in a trading update thanks to the Middle East boom. It rose 2% on the day to 693p and turned our ton into £112.