Nestlé positive about outlook

Nestlé, the Swiss food group, has today achieved analyst expectations announcing a 7.2% increase in 9-month underlying sales and confirmed its full-year outlook.

Peter Brabeck, the group’s chief executive, said he is confident that Nestlé will achieve underlying sales growth in 2007 of more than its long-term 5% to 6% target and a sustainable improvement in margins for 2007 overall.

Strong brands had allowed the world’s largest food group to increase prices in order to lessen rising input costs. Costs for agricultural goods including coffee, cocoa and wheat have increased steadily over the course of the year.

Group 9-month sales increased 9% to SFr78.7bn ($66.64 billion), underlying sales growth which strips out acquisitions and currency movements was 7.2% for the period January-September while internal growth which also strips out inflation was 4.5%.

The group has also announced a new CFO, James Singh, currently head of acquisitions and business development at Nestlé. He will take over from Paul Polman who will become head of Nestlé’s Zone Americas from February next year.

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