Swiss meat group Hügli said that the negative impact of currency exchange and the revaluation of the Swiss franc wiped out the progress made on sales and earnings in 2015.
Revealing its full-year sales figures this morning (28 January) Hügli said total sales edged up 0.4% to CHF378.3m in the 12 month period. Currency exchange trimmed more than 10 points off the top line and in local currencies sales were up 10.8%, the group revealed.
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Currency exchange will also take its toll on full-year earnings, Hügli added. The company said that losses on forex will “annihilate” its operating performance. “At group EBIT level, currency loss thus clearly exceeds -10%. The profit contribution achieved in operating terms by organic sales growth and the already profitable acquisitions, that could have clearly increased EBIT at group level had foreign currency rates remained constant, was overcompensated by the currency losses. EBIT and net profit 2015 are therefore expected to lie slightly below the previous year’s level.”
The impact of currency meant Hügli booked declining sales across the majority of its divisions, including a 7.8% drop in food service. Strong organic growth of 14.5% in the group’s private label unit drove sales here up by 1.4%. The price sensitive environment drove Hügli’s branded sales down 5.9% on an organic basis, but acquisitions lifted the group’s total branded sales by 39.5%, the group revealed.
