FDBusiness.com

Nestlé has reported a by 0.5% rise in sales to SFr20.9 billion (€20.3 billion) for the first quarter of 2015 and confirmed its full year outlook. Sales were impacted by negative foreign exchange of -4.5%,  and acquisitions, net of divestitures, added 0.6%.

Organic growth was 4.4%, composed of 1.9% real internal growth and 2.5% pricing. Nestlé continued to grow in all geographies during the period – 5.6% in the Americas (AMS), 4.5% in Europe, Middle East and North Africa (EMENA) and 2.2% in Asia, Oceania and sub-Saharan Africa (AOA). Organic growth in developed markets was 2.5% and 6.7% in emerging markets. The Nestlé Waters division posted 7.4% organic growth.

Paul Bulcke (pictured), chief executive of Nestlé, comments: “Our three-month sales growth was in line with expectations and driven by both real internal growth and pricing. We delivered good performances in Zone EMENA, Nestlé Waters and Other businesses. We continued our efforts to restore momentum in Zone AOA and in North America, and expect these initiatives to gain traction throughout the year. Our full-year outlook is confirmed – we aim to achieve organic growth of around 5% with improvements in margins, underlying earnings per share in constant currencies and capital efficiency.”