Engineering firm Smiths Group (LON:SMIN) saw shares sink 10 percent on Friday morning after reporting weaker-than-expected first half results.

The group’s figures were knocked by a hefty tax impairment charge and weakness in its core businesses, causing pretax profit to fall 12 percent to £217 million. This figure came in well below analysts expectations of £283 million, but the group confirmed its forecast for the full year.

Revenue fell 4.3 percent to £1.55 billion, after delays in new product launches at Smiths Medical dragging down overall revenue figures. The group also warned that foreign exchange, at current rates, will remain a headwind for the year.