Wales Business Stephen Farrell

Turnover has risen by 14 per cent at agricultural machinery retailer Frank Sutton. The directors said they were satisfied with the performance in a year of "Brexit uncertainty and ongoing development".

The company, founded in 1962, employs about 30 staff and is a main dealer for the sale and maintenance of John Deere and Caterpillar equipment. It has sites in Raglan and Bridgend.

According to the latest accounts for Frank Sutton Ltd, turnover grew to £14m in the year ending 31 December 2016, up from £12.3m in 2015.

However, pre-tax profit dipped to £513,641, from £523,900 the year before.

In their report accompanying the accounts, the directors said they were "satisfied with the trading results returned in a year of Brexit uncertainty and ongoing development".

The business is said to have "significant distributable reserves" which put it in "a strong position to develop and expand".

Both the Raglan and Bridgend sites were said to have performed well, achieving a "resilient trading performance".

Frank Sutton has recently completed an expansion programme at the Raglan outlet and now plans to make a further investment in its Bridgend site, as well as into the company's IT systems.

The directors added: "The directors are expecting turnover to slow down in 2018 following a good start to the year. Brexit continues to cause uncertainty in the machinery market, while sterling movements have meant that imported machinery is more expensive.

"The continuing aim of the director is to use the strong financial and market place position of the company to deliver ongoing growth, reinforcing the strong foundation of a unique business model."