Ms Intl. Share News (MSI)

(Sharecast News) - MS International on Tuesday swung to an interim loss after revenue from three of its divisions fell as the company's trading was hit by political and economic challenges.
The manufacturer booked a loss before tax of £0.5m for the six months ended 31 October, compared with a profit of £3.2m in the same period last year, as revenues shrank by 12% to £33.3m.

The AIM-listed company meanwhile left its dividend unchanged at 1.7p per share.

The company said that many of the markets that it served had tightened due to political and economic instability, with the tough conditions having been exacerbated by some sector specific issues impacting across the company.

Its turnover tumbled, driven by a 49% drop in revenue from the corporate branding segment, which declined to £6.8m on the back of restructuring efforts following the acquisition of two specialist businesses in the Netherlands.

Sales at the petrol station super structures division also fell, by 7% to £7.4m, while forgings turnover dipped by 6% to £7.3m.

Meanwhile, revenue from the defence business rose by 34% to £12.1m following the launch of a number of new products from its privately-funded development programmes.

Chairman Michael Bell said: "Clearly, although not unforeseen, the performance has been disappointing in some areas of the group but elsewhere what is being achieved is quite pleasing, albeit the benefits are yet to be demonstrated in our results.

"Opportunities are undoubtedly there, while fresh ones continue to arise, so we are seriously endeavouring to ensure that we are in a positive and capable position to maximise prospects as and when presented."

MS International shares were down by 9.72% at 162.50p at 1535 GMT.