The UK’s largest high street baker, Greggs, has posted a 12% rise in 2002 pre-tax profit to £36.7m (US$58.9m), beating analysts’ forecasts of £34.1-35.7m.

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The company, which sells over 100 million sausage rolls per year from its 1,200 Greggs and Bakers Oven outlets, posted like-for-like sales up 5.2% in the first nine weeks of its new financial year, compared to 6.4% in 2002.

Managing Director Mike Darrington said full-year sales growth was likely to be “a smidgen below, or about that level (5.2%)”.

Darrington said he was unsure whether analysts would raise their profit forecasts for 2003, as the strong 2002 results were offset by an expected £1.8m increase in insurance costs, reported Reuters.

The company said like-for-like sales at its Greggs shops rose 7.6% in the year to 28 December 2002, whereas like-for-like sales at its Bakers Oven shops increased by only 2.7%.

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Greggs plans to spend £40m in 2003 opening 45 new shops and refurbishing existing outlets.

The company has recently opened two shops in Belgium, and plans to spend around £500,000 opening two more this year.

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