Chemring 'well placed' to deal with Covid-19 after 'critical' designation
Aerospace firm Chemring said it was "well placed" to weather the Covid-19 storm on Tuesday after seeing its operations in the US, UK and Norway being designated as "critical" to defence and national security.
Chemring said all of its businesses remained open, with the group continuing to make "every effort" to maintain delivery of essential services and manufacturing production.
The FTSE 250-listed firm stated that since its last announcement on 4 March, order placement had continued - including the recent receipt of a $17m order to supply countermeasures for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter programme.
In terms of finances, Chemring said it had taken various actions to protect profitability and to conserve cash, with operational expenditure being reduced and all discretionary spending being tightly controlled.
While Chemring acknowledged that the duration and impact of the Covid-19 pandemic were unknown, the group said it was well placed to deal with the challenges, with a robust strategy, market-leading positions across different geographies and sectors, and with products and services that were critical to government and blue-chip customers.
This, together with the group's strong balance sheet, gave the firm confidence that despite the near-term uncertainty, its long-term prospects remained strong.
Chief executive Michael Ord said: "All of our businesses remain open reflecting our essential contribution to the defence and national security missions of our customers and we are committed to supporting them throughout this crisis.
"Whilst we are clearly mindful of market uncertainty due to COVID-19, we continue to see positive momentum across the group and our improving order book, robust financial position and strategy ensure that our long-term prospects remain strong."
As of 0900 BST, Chemring shares were up 2.22% at 207.50p.