Business
AGM Statement - Trading Update
AGM Statement - Trading Update.
About this update from Spirax Group Plc.
[{"type":"text","content":"\n \n \n RNS Number : 7002M\n Spirax-Sarco Engineering PLC\n 13 May 2020\n \n \n \n \n \n \n News Release\n \n \n \n \n \n Wednesday 13th May 2020\n \n \n AGM Statement - TRADING UPDATE \n \n \n Trading performance holding up, despite unprecedented circumstances\n \n \n \n \n \n Thermal energy management and niche pumping specialist, Spirax-Sarco Engineering plc, issues the following trading update in respect of the four months ended 30th April 2020. \n \n \n \n \n \n Economic environment\n \n \n The global macro-economic environment has worsened significantly since the announcement of our preliminary results on 11th March when the forecast for global Industrial Production growth for 2020 was an expansion of 0.8%. Since then the full-year forecast has fallen to a contraction of 6.6% as the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is felt across the world, with quarterly year-on-year contractions of 3.8%, 10.6%, 7.6% and 4.2% expected throughout the year. \n \n \n \n \n \n Trading\n \n \n Despite the unprecedented economic environment trading has held up well. A small number of our manufacturing facilities in different countries faced temporary closures to comply with government directives. However, all our production facilities are now open, albeit operating at varying levels of capacity due to our desire to ensure a safe working environment for employees including the needs of staff who are shielding or self-isolating. Sales engineers remain in close contact with customers globally to satisfy immediate needs, although physical access to customer's facilities has been significantly curtailed in a number of geographies. Over 50% of our sales are destined to critical sectors on the front line of this global pandemic, such as Hospitals & Healthcare, Pharmaceutical & Biotechnology, Food & Beverage, Power Generation and Water Treatment, which have retained a higher resiliency of demand during this period. \n \n \n \n \n \n Demand from MRO (Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul) and small improvement project activities, which traditionally make up c. 85% of revenues, experienced only a mild decline compared to a very strong comparable period in 2019. Over 80% of demand weakness arose from the postponement of larger project orders. ...