Emerging markets deal blow to Diageo
Drinks giant Diageo said the weakness of emerging-market currencies would cut its full-year profits by £150m.
The owner of the Baileys, Smirnoff and Johnnie Walker brands said its earlier warning that North American sales would decline by two per cent was unchanged, and that emerging market demand for premium spirits was likely to fall.
Phil Carroll at Shore Capital predicted that revenues will fall over the next two years, although there should be a slight increase in profits-before-tax in 2016.
Carroll pointed out that the company’s improving growth trend is cause for optimism, especially given how Diageo has struggled with that in the past.
Philip Gorham, senior equity analyst at Morningstar, said: “Diageo remains one of our best ideas in the consumer staples space.”