Oil slump hits engineer

BRUTAL cost- cutting by energy firms in the face of low oil prices has battered engineering firm Melrose.

The company warned that its Brush division, which makes generating equipment for oil and gas firms, was facing the toughest conditions since 2008.

Chief executive Simon Peckham said the market for Brush has been ‘literally horrible’ since crude prices crashed three years ago.

Shares slipped 4.1pc, or 9.3p, to 220p. The warning overshadowed a strong performance at Melrose for the first half of 2017.

It reported profits of £ 47.8m on revenues of £1.1bn, up from a £9.2m loss in the same period last year. And the dividend is up from 0.3p to 1.4p a share.