Automotive and aerospace firm GKN is expected to make up to £80 million profits this year after it revealed to investors that trading had been better than expected.

The Birmingham manufacturer said its full-year pretax profit would likely be ahead of analyst expectations and that demand in its key markets had continued to improve over the last two months.

In a statement to the London Stock Exchange, the firm said: “Profit before tax for 2009 is expected to be in the range £70-80 million pounds, including an additional £7 million pound finance charge from a recent bond repurchase.

“Overall demand in GKN’s major markets has been better than anticipated since October.”

GKN said its aerospace unit continues to perform well and that sales at its automotive arm had improved in the fourth quarter, helped by government incentive programmes to support the sales of smaller light vehicles.

The company is expected to report a pretax profit of between £23.8 million and £76.3 million for 2009, according to a poll of seven analysts conducted by Thomson Reuters.

GKN, which in June raised £423 million in a rights issue to pay off debt, said its year-end net debt position would be lower than the £374 million debt it had at the end of last year.

It added that the cost of its restructuring plan in 2009/10 would rise to around £130 million from the previously expected £103 million due to additional restructuring actions at its struggling OffHighway unit.