Chemring profits from defence boom

CHEMRING is set to record its highest profit in about a decade, after the war in Ukraine prompted a flurry of defence spending.

The FTSE 250-listed company, whose results are out next week, is expected to have made £65million in the financial year to October, according to estimates from Refinitiv, a provider of financial market data.

Chemring’s business has been boosted by a rise in Western governments’ defence spending following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and heightened geopolitical tensions in the Asia-Pacific region.

The company, whose order book was at record levels earlier this year, makes materials and components for missile systems, explosives and propellants.

It announced a £50million share buyback programme in August.

Chemring’s shares have risen by 11 per cent this year and it is now valued at more than £900 million. Fellow London-listed defence firms including BAE Systems have also seen profits soar.