LONDON (ShareCast) - Molten metal flow engineering firm Vesuvius said it has seen a "softening in market conditions in certain regions" since the half-year stage, but its full-year outlook hasn't changed.
Trading in the third quarter has been in line with the board's expectations, it said, despite annual growth in the global steel industry falling to just 1%. This means that the industry has expanded by only 2.1% year-on-year over the first nine months of 2014.

Nevertheless, the company said it continues to outperform the steel market in terms of underlying revenue growth. The steel division accounted for around 67% of group revenues in the first half.

Meanwhile, the foundry division continues to be affected by "challenging" conditions. Truck and light vehicle production is still above 2013, but the rate of growth has slowed recently. What's more, the group said that the low levels of investment in the mining end market are yet to improve.

Looking ahead, the company highlighted weaker growth in Europe and a tough trading environment in end markets in South American and Asia.

"We expect these conditions to continue for the remainder of the year," the company said

Nevertheless, a focus on operating efficiency is expected to drive further margin improvement and the board's expectations for the full year remain unchanged.

The stock was down 1.2% at 420.7p in early deals on Friday.

Email this article to a friend

or share it with one of these popular networks:

• DIGG
• FACEBOOK
• STUMBLEUPON
• MIXX
• YAHOO BUZZ
• DELICIOUS
• REDDIT
• NEWSVINE