Stock Spirits cautions 'extremely weak' Q1

Stock Spirits Group has warned of an ‘extremely weak’ first quarter in a trading statement released ahead of its annual general meeting today. 

The Central European spirits producer expects the full-year result to be unchanged despite chain disruptions in Poland continuing throughout Q1 and says it is encouraged by the “re-emergence of more normal trading conditions in the six weeks since Easter.

“In Poland, the market rate of decline in vodka consumption reduced slightly to 3.8% in the three months to March, versus 4.3% in 2014,” the statement read. “We continued not to chase uneconomic sales and therefore have lost share.”

The company says all other market results are in line with expectations.

The statement continued: “We therefore anticipate reporting a weak overall result for H1, but with a continued recovery in H2 we expect our full year results to be in line with expectations. This assumes the continuation of normal trading conditions together with benefits seen from our recent initiatives.”

 Stock Spirits will report its first half results on 20 August 2015.