US, Europe drive Somero's 'solid' 2018 trading

Concrete installation firm Somero Enterprises on Tuesday said its “solid” start to 2018 had seen four of the company’s six global markets achieving growth.

A trading update from the AIM-traded company said that Europe and North America were the most significant contributors to growth over the first six months of the year, while the Middle East and the ‘rest of the world’ made meaningful contributions.

The company indicated that it expected trading and net cash for the full year to be in line with market expectations due to the continuation of the healthy market conditions across Somero's global footprint along with robust margins and operating cash flow generation.

Jack Cooney, chief executive of Somero, said: "The positive momentum of our business and favorable market conditions point to a positive H2 2018. In addition, we are truly excited about the significant opportunities for Somero that lie ahead derived from our continued investment in new product development, a key element to our long-term growth strategy."

Trading in China and Latin America fell slightly, but Somero said it was “encouraged” by the activity level in the market in the former.

The firm cited the timing of customer projects for the Latin American drop in trading, but trading is expected to improve in the second half of the year as future activity levels in the territory are anticipated to be healthy.

At 0837 BST, Somero Enterprises’ shares were up 1.89% at 405.00p.