Vevey / CH. (nsa) In the first three months of 2013, sales of Swiss Nestle S.A. increased 5,4 percent to 21,9 billion CHF. Organic growth was 4,3 percent, composed of 2,3 percent real internal growth and 2,0 percent pricing. Acquisitions, net of divestitures, added 2,0 percent to sales, whilst foreign exchange had an impact of minus 0,9 percent.
The Group´s three geographies all contributed to the first quarter’s 4,3 percent organic growth, which builds on the 7,2 percent organic growth achieved in the first quarter of 2012. The Americas grew by 5,1 percent, Europe by 1,0 percent and Asia, Oceania and Africa by 6,1 percent. The business grew 8,4 percent in emerging markets, 0,9 percent in developed markets, reflecting contrasting trading conditions across different regions.
CEO Paul Bulcke: «The start to the year reflects the caution we expressed in February. We continue to expect some volatility throughout 2013 but reconfirm our expectation to deliver on our commitments for the full year: top line, bottom line and capital efficiency. We are outperforming the market in Europe where consumer sentiment remains low. We are seeing progress in our North American business and we expect to see stronger momentum in key emerging markets. Our global presence, unrivalled category diversity and our proven ability to bring innovative products and services to our consumers allow us to deliver in the short term while at the same time creating the right conditions for continued success over the long term».
2013 Outlook
The start to the year was as demanding as expected. Nestle continues to expect some volatility throughout the year but reconfirms its expectation to deliver the Nestle Model once again in 2013: organic growth between five and six percent together with an improved trading operating profit margin and underlying earnings per share in constant currency, as well as improvement in our capital efficiency.
