Revenues at £7.4 billion were 15% higher than 2005 due to asset disposals of the beverage business in Europe, South Africa and Syria.
The confectionary firm reported earnings of £738 million or 56.4 pence a share, from £835 million or 37.3 a pence, 7% lower than the prior year due to the combination of higher tax rates and offset by the dilutive impact of beverage disposals. The most significant acquisitions were Dr Pepper/seven up bottling group and Cadbury Nigeria. The board has proposed a 10% increase in the final dividend to 9.9 pence taking the total dividend to 14.0 pence, an overall increase of 8%.
