Preliminary numbers from channel behemoth Datatec – parent of distie Westcon and integrator Logicalis – show it has broken the $5bn sales barrier, but they also reveal that IT spending in the UK remains "very weak".

For the year ended 29 February, the group expects revenues of roughly half a billion dollars, up from $4.3bn in the previous year and a massive 82 per cent rise in profit after tax to $84m.

The firm said that since its last market update in January "conditions have remained challenging in North America and Europe".

Datatec added: "There have been signs of recovery emerging in the US, however the environment in the UK is still very weak. Latin America, in particular Brazil, had another period of exceptional performance."

The full year audited results are due out in May. ®