Diageo sees annual sales at low end of guidance

Diageo said annual sales growth would be at the low end of its guidance as the drinks company reported a 2% increase in first-half underlying operating profit.

Operating profit before exceptional items for the six months to the end of December rose to £2.5bn from £2.45bn. Net sales rose 4% to £7.2bn.

Organic net sales, one of the group's key performance measures, rose 4%. The maker of Johnnie Walker whisky and Smirnoff vodka said it had achieved the results amid increased volatility in markets such as India and Latin America.

"For the full year, we therefore expect organic net sales growth to be towards the lower end of our 4 to 6% mid-term guidance range," chief executive Ivan Menezes said. "We continue to expect organic operating profit to grow roughly one percentage point ahead of organic net sales."

Menezes said there was continuing uncertainty in global trade and that Diageo "would not be immune from further policy changes".