Ricardo motoring as orders surge

A SURPRISE pre-Christmas recovery in orders boosted the shares of consulting automotive engineer Ricardo by 20p, or 10%, to 217 1/2p today.

The group expects to have broken even in the six months to December. The share price more than halved in the autumn after Ricardo warned of tough conditions in the international automotive market.

December was its best month for orders since June with major vehicle makers' requirements, mainly for its equipment to cut emissions, beating forecasts by chief executive Rodney Westhead.

He said today that he was encouraged by the surprise recovery, and hopes it will be sustainable into the second half.

Westhead said in a trading update today that there were 'initial signs that our automotive market may be on the turn'. He added: 'We are confident that Ricardo is well positioned to return to growth as the market recovers.'

However, the group, based in Shoreham, West Sussex, will take a £3.3m hit in the first half as a result of redundancies and the release of contract workers that involved a total of 250 people. The group expects savings of £10m a year.