Walter Watson shows steel to register £6m pre-tax profit amid volatile market

Co Down steel specialist Walter Watson was back in growth mode last year, new accounts show. The Castlewellan-based family firm registered a 5% uplift in revenue to £61.8 million for 2025, one year after its revenues slumped by 25%.However, the competitive nature of the steel product business and “volatile” input costs cut its profit for the second successive year. Walter Watson Ltd recorded a £6.2m pre-tax profit for the 12 months ended December 31 2025, some £1.5m down on 2024.The company’s gross profit margin also tightened from 19.4% in 2024 to 17.2% last year.The directors of the Co Down steel firm, which employs around 227 people, said the latest financial disclosure reflected “a highly resilient set of results”, which they described as “satisfactory considering the volatile nature o