Pernod Sees “Early Signs of Improvement”

Dear Client:In the three months to September 30, Pernod Ricard’s overall organic net sales declined -4% in line with the company’s expectation, beating Diageo (-6%) and LVMH (-11%). Pernod said Q1 was “satisfactory” compared to a record Q1 in 2008. They also see “early signs of improvement...in certain markets,” including duty free and depletions in the US. And that brings us to the Americas. Organic net sales declined -2% in the Americas, while US depletions were up for the first