Molten metal flow engineering company Vesuvius said full year pre-tax profits rose 22.3% to £97.1m as global steel production increased.
Underlying trading profit increased 16.1% to £165.5m. The full year dividend was increased by 8.8% to 18 pence a share.

The company said global steel production excluding China was supported by a significant decrease in Chinese steel exports, which may not repeat in 2018.

Vesuvius said its performance in China was strong, with 9.2% underlying revenue growth.

"We benefited from the trend in China towards higher quality steel requiring higher quality products and value creating solutions," it said in a statement.

"Even in the relatively mature regions of Europe and the US, we delivered revenue growth in excess of underlying markets, achieving revenue growth of 7.6% and 8%, respectively."

Chief executive Patrick André said the company had launched a new restructuring programme targeting £15m of annual savings by 2020 in its other businesses.

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