Profit steady at Hyder

Engineering consultant Hyder has reported steady results for the first six months of the year and said it is confident of meeting full-year expectations.

Pre-tax profit for the six months to 30 September was £5.67m, almost unchanged from the previous year, while turnover grew 3.1% to £156.3m, up from £151.6m in 2008. The firm’s margin slipped to 6.1% from 6.5% while its order book increased by 1.7% to £352m.

The economic downturn took its toll in the UK and Europe, where the group saw a 7% fall in turnover to £60.6m. However the Middle East reported a 16% turnover rise to £50.7m and the Asia Pacific region a 5% boost to £45m.

Net debt rose from £5.7m to £16.2m between the end of March and end of September, largely due to redundancy payments and property provisions totalling £6m and special pension contributions of £3m.

Hyder’s chairman, Sir Alan Thomas, said growth overseas had put the group in a strong position to deal with market challenges.

He said: "I am pleased to report that our half year results are in line with the prior year and market expectations. Over 70% of revenues are now earned overseas and our geographic and sector diversity gives us confidence in meeting our expectations for the remainder of the financial year."