DRINKS giant Diageo had another roller-coaster day yesterday after releasing grimmer than expected half-year results.

The market initially found the Guinness maker not to their taste before a late rally.

The firm warned that an alreadyflagged slowdown in Latin America and the Caribbean was set to get worse and showed volumes slipping across all global markets, albeit with positive net sales in Europe and APAC.

But the firm's UK boss told City A.M. that the company's fundamentals were sound.

Nuno Teles said that social media 'Guin-fluencers,' an uptick in women drinking the black stuff and the Six Nations would give the firm a big boost in its home market.

Diageo did report a more than £2.5bn profit in the first half of its financial year, with boss Debra Crew keen to talk up the firm's market-leading position in "an attractive sector with a long runway for growth."

A more than £250m slide in revenues in Latin America dragged on the bottom line, however, and Crew warned that it was likely to continue to get worse before it gets better with smarter inventory control.

"The first half of fiscal 24 was challenging for Diageo and our sector, particularly as we lapped strong growth in the prior year and faced an uneven global consumer environment," the former US Army captain Crew said.

"While the macro environment will continue to present challenges, I am confident that we remain well-positioned and resilient for the long term," she continued.

(c) 2024 City A.M., source Newspaper