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Manufacturer Victrex is to cut a 10th of its workforce after tumbling to a hefty loss for the past six months.

Shares in the Lancashire-based polymer producer were lower in early trading on Monday as a result.

The London-listed firm said it is pushing forward with a profit improvement plan to help shore up its finances, which is currently “progressing well”.

It will cut around 10% of jobs in the third quarter of 2026 as a result, primarily in central operations rather than customer-facing roles.

Victrex did not disclose how many employees will be impacted by cuts but it employs around 1,100 workers globally, according to its latest annual report.

It said that costs from the severance process will be part of up to £10 million in exceptional costs to be incurred for the current financial year.

It came as the company reported a pre-tax loss of £44 million for the six months to March, sliding from a £17.2 million profit a year earlier.

The significant loss was linked to a £60.6 million non-cash impairment on a Chinese manufacturing facility.

The Thornton-Cleveleys-based company said underlying pre-tax profits were down 18% to £19 million for the half-year.

James Routh, chief executive officer of Victrex, said: “During my first four months leading Victrex I have been greatly impressed by our strong, differentiated products and solutions, and well invested assets.

“However, despite the passion and innovation amongst our people, we have not adapted quickly enough to changed market conditions and we must now relentlessly focus on improving our execution.

“The rapid action we have taken to address these issues, through implementing the profit improvement plan and establishing a high-performance leadership team, will help to drive our next phase of sustainable growth.”