First Derivatives plc announced that it has continued to trade strongly in the second half of the financial year ended 28 February 2018. As a result, the Board now expects to report a financial performance slightly ahead of the current consensus forecasts of £180.2 million of revenue and £32.9 million of adjusted EBITDA. The Group has also completed its analysis of the impact of the US Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which has resulted in a reduction in the US Federal corporate income tax rate from 35% to 21%. The US tax reform is expected to benefit the Group through an ongoing reduction in the Group's effective tax rate of 4%-6%, in preliminary view.