Glasgow engineers Weir Group upbeat on order book

Weir said its revenues were strengthened by strong order input in the first half

Engineering firm Weir Group has said it is confident of starting 2012 with a record order book after posting strong results in the third quarter.

Weir said market conditions across the mining and upstream oil and gas sectors "remained strong" in the three months to the end of September.

The Glasgow-based engineers also reported a new record in quarterly orders.

Revenues were strengthened by strong order input in the first half.

Reported orders rose by 27% in the third quarter, with orders in its oil and gas division rising by 24% compared to the same period last year.

Weir said downstream market conditions remained "challenging" while Middle East service markets continued to be positive.

It reported "mixed" overall market conditions in its power and industrial division, citing continuing delays in nuclear projects and largely weak general industrial markets.

Weir shares dropped by 6.1% in early trading on Monday as its positive interim management statement prompted some profit-taking.

In a statement, Weir said: "Although we remain vigilant given current macro-economic uncertainty, this performance underpins our confidence in delivering a strong set of results for 2011, in line with our expectations, and starting 2012 with a record order book."