Pernod Ricard toasts China and India

Pernod Ricard, Scotland’s second largest whisky company, yesterday unscrewed a 6.3 per cent jump in nine-month organic sales to €7.06 billion (£6.14bn), driven by “very dynamic” trading in China and India.

The group, whose whiskies include Chivas Regal and Glenlivet, said travel retail and Africa Middle East also performed well, with overall sales in “Asia-rest of World” up 10 per cent.

Pernod Ricard said there was also healthy sales growth in the Americas, up 6 per cent, blending a good outturn in the United States and “acceleration” in Latin America.

The performance got better as the period progressed, with third-quarter sales growth of 9.3 per cent, helped by the favourable phasing of the Chinese New Year and Easter.

Alexandre Ricard, chairman and chief executive of Pernod Ricard, said: “We have had a very strong year-to-date, Our strategy is consistent and driving results, in particular in terms of diversifying the sources of growth.”

He also confirmed the group’s full-year profits guidance of a 6 per cent rise in profit in the current financial year, first given to the market in February.

The company also said yesterday that it “remains committed to value-creating M&A [mergers and acquisitions] while retaining an investment grade rating”.

Actual reported nine-month sales growth was just 0.2 per cent, due to unfavourable foreign exchange movements, “mainly linked to the strengthening of the euro, in particular versus the American dollar. 0 Alexandre Ricard hailed a ‘very strong year’ for group