The group suffered in Asia Pacific (32% of sales) to the tune of 16.8% negative growth against the same period in 2013 – which had fallen 25.6% on 2012.

The Americas (35% of sales) fell 1% in sales growth during the period but good news came in the form of Europe Middle East and Africa (33% of sales) gaining 2.8%.

Rémy Martin Cognac was the major contributor to down trading. Due to “continued destocking in China” the brand dropped 13.4% in H1, while liqueurs, driven by a solid performance from Cointreau, increased 9.1%.

The group generated €471.8m, 59% of which was provided by Rémy Martin sales.