Higher sugar sales and strong growth at the Primark clothes retailer helped Associated British Foods to insulate itself against tough conditions in the UK food grocery market in its first fiscal quarter.

For the 16 weeks to 5 January, Associated British Foods (ABF) said today (17 January) that net sales rose by 10% on the same period of last year. It did not release sales amounts.

Go deeper with GlobalData

Premium Insights

The gold standard of business intelligence.

Find out more

ABF was particularly pleased with Primark’s performance, with the clothes retailer seeing sales rise by 25% over the period. There was also a 12% rise in sugar sales and a 3% increase in the group’s agriculture division, thanks to higher demand for feed and feed enzyme.

Those business units helped to offset tougher conditions in grocery, where sales were flat on the previous year. Grocery sales actually declined in Australia, but were held up elsewhere by Twinings Ovaltine and higher bread prices.

In ingredients, sales were also level with the same period of the prior year.

See Also:

On its bottom line, ABF management said that operating cashflow improved during the period due to higher profits.

How well do you really know your competitors?

Access the most comprehensive Company Profiles on the market, powered by GlobalData. Save hours of research. Gain competitive edge.

Company Profile – free sample

Thank you!

Your download email will arrive shortly

Not ready to buy yet? Download a free sample

We are confident about the unique quality of our Company Profiles. However, we want you to make the most beneficial decision for your business, so we offer a free sample that you can download by submitting the below form

By GlobalData
Visit our Privacy Policy for more information about our services, how we may use, process and share your personal data, including information of your rights in respect of your personal data and how you can unsubscribe from future marketing communications. Our services are intended for corporate subscribers and you warrant that the email address submitted is your corporate email address.

In its outlook, the firm said: “As previously indicated, the full year result for AB Sugar is expected to be lower than last year but we anticipate that this will be more than offset by growth at Primark and some recovery in grocery.

“In light of the group’s current performance we now expect to make further progress in adjusted operating profit for the full year, with the improvement heavily weighted towards the first half.”