Northwest engineering giant Rolls-Royce has made strong progress in the first half of the year.

Underlying profit before tax grew by eight per cent to £410 million, despite increases in energy and commodity costs.

The company's order book grew by £7.6 billion to £53.5 billion, with the growing Asian markets now accounting for 40 per cent of the total.

In the first six months of the year, sales climbed by 12 per cent on an underlying basis to £4,211 million.

Sir John Rose, chief executive, welcomed the strong set of results.

"Over the last decade, Rolls-Royce has pursued a consistent strategy which has created a global power systems company with a broad and diverse portfolio of products and services," he added.

Earlier this month, Rolls-Royce reached an agreement with Asiana Airlines of South Korea to supply Trent XWB engines for up to 40 Airbus A350 XWB aircraft.