Rémy Cointreau, the French distiller, reported a bigger drop in nine-month total organic sales than analysts expected as revenue growth from liqueurs and spirits slowed down in the third quarter.
Sales fell 12 per cent to €740.9 million in the nine months through December, the Paris-based company said today in a statement.
Revenue declined 4.1 per cent on a pro-forma basis and excluding currency shifts, compared with the median estimate of a 3.3 per cent decline.
Organic sales of liqueurs and spirits rose 0.1 per cent in the third quarter, decelerating from seven per cent in the second quarter.
Nine-month cognac revenue, which has been weighed down by China’s crackdown on lavish spending, fell 9.3 per cent on the same basis, compared with an estimated 10.6 per cent drop. Cognac sales in the third quarter rose 0.4 per cent as shipments to greater China and the US increased, Rémy said.
Bloomberg News, edited by ESM
