LONDON (ShareCast) - Scottish soft drinks manufacturer AG Barr lifted revenues and profits in the six months to July 26th, but saw sales held back by another summer of poor weather.

Profit on ordinary activities before tax and exceptional items jumped nearly 10% to £11.1m on turnover that rose by 6% to £82.4m, though sales in the previous period had also suffered from a lack of sunshine during summer 2007.

The continuation of the miserable weather through August and September also hit sales, chief executive Roger White said, adding that the company has had to pay higher prices for raw materials such as aluminium, plastic and glass.

“The combination of poor summer weather, volatile input costs and the generally gloomy economic outlook will make the balance of the year challenging, however assuming the market doesn't deteriorate significantly from now, we anticipate meeting our expectations for the full year,” White said.

IRN-BRU revenue rose by 5.8% as sales increased across England, Wales and Scotland. White said IRN-BRU accounts for about 60% of AG Barr’s total revenues. Over the whole business, Scotland accounts for about 56% of revenues and England and Wales 44%, he said.

However, he added that this would all change with the recent acquisition of exotic drinks maker Rubicon. AG Barr announced last month that it would buy Rubicon for £59.8m.

Finance director Alex Short pointed out that exotic drinks account for about 12% of the UK soft drinks market.

“Rubicon’s very popular among ethnic minorities – Indians tend to drink mango juice instead of orange juice – but we have started advertising it on TV to widen its appeal,” he said.

• News Channel