Babcock reports orders breakthrough

Babcock International's (BAB) underlying half-year pre-tax profits slumped 18 per cent to £202.5m, as a host of the engineering group’s big contracts, including aircraft carrier work, are coming to a close. But a record combined order book and pipeline of over £34bn, which includes the building of five Type-31 frigates for the UK’s Royal Navy and entry into new markets Norway and Canada, hints at a resurgence for Babcock, which has endured a series of downgrades in recent years.