20 Mar, 2020 12:59 20 Mar, 2020 12:59

Drinks company C&C says Covid-19 will have 'material' impact

C&C said on Friday that the outbreak of the coronavirus will have a "material" impact on its performance in the current financial year.

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The premium drinks company, which is behind brands such as Tennent's and Magners, said that since its trading update earlier in March, market conditions have deteriorated.

"Given the ongoing uncertainty, we are unable to accurately quantify the expected impact of Covid-19 on our financial and trading performance at this stage. However we expect a material reduction to our prior expectations for FY21.

"The scale of this reduction will depend upon how the situation develops, over what timeframe, and the impact of further measures implemented by the Irish and UK governments."

To date, the company has drawn down its full revolving credit facility and is working to ensure further credit is available if required. In, addition, it has "significantly" reduced its capital expenditure, and cut marketing spend and other costs.

C&C said that based on some of the measures taken and its liquidity position, among other things, it is "well-positioned to withstand a material decrease in business activity during 2020".