Diageo, the international drinks firm that owns Guinness, Baileys and Bushmills here, has reported operating profit growth of 9% for the first half of its financial year.
The company said that global Guinness net sales grew 5% despite a 2% decline in Western Europe, while Guinness is the best selling beer in Ireland with a share of 32% of the market.
It said that in Ireland the total alcoholic drinks market declined by 2% in volume for the six months to December 2011.
The group said that a once-off tax charge sent its profits down 20% in the last six months of 2011, despite rising income following a strong performance in emerging markets.
Diageo, whose other global brands include Johnnie Walker scotch and Smirnof vodka, said its net profit for the period - the first half of its financial year - was £953m, down from £1.19 billion a year earlier.
The company booked a one-time loss of £524m because of tax negotiations which stripped it of the right to certain tax deductions in future years.
However, Diageo said the negotiations also promised to keep the company's effective tax rate at about 18%, compared to 21.8% in the last half of 2010.
Pre-tax profit rose 15% to £1.86 billion and revenue was up nearly 10% to £7.83 billion.
Paul Walsh, the company's chief executive, said emerging markets in Africa, Latin America and Europe have grown to account for nearly 40% of its business.
Sales volume in Latin America grew by 14% in the period, while Africa was up 7% and Asia Pacific - including its developed markets - rose 5%. Revenue was dented by adverse currency movements in Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa and the US.
''We are cautious as to the consumer and economic trends we will face in 2012 but these first half results have positioned us well and they have demonstrated that Diageo has the brands, the routes to market and the people to deliver our medium term guidance,'' comments its chief executive Paul Walsh.
