British American Tobacco reports revenue rise in first half

31st Jul 2013 07:36

British American Tobacco saw its first half revenue rise four per cent to 7.5bn pounds on strong price momentum and increased market share.The FTSE 100 company reported a 6.0% jump in adjusted profit from operations to £2.9bn and a 10% jump in adjusted diluted earnings per share to 109.1p. The group's cigarette market share continued to increase in its Top 40 markets, led by strong market share growth of the Global Drive Brands, which rose volume by 2.3%. Globally, Dunhill, Lucky Strike and Pall Mall all increased market share, while Kent was stable. Cigarette volume came to 332bn, a decline of 3.4%, while tobacco volume dropped 3.2%. The firm was hit by a total industry slump, a demanding one-off comparator and the leap year impact. "Despite fragile economic conditions persisting in some parts of the world, notably Europe, British American Tobacco has delivered another good set of results," said Chairman, Richard Burrows. "The business is performing well and we are confident of another year of good earnings growth."The board recommended an interim dividend of 45p, up 7.0% on last year.RD