Ebro Foods sees inflation driving $63 mln jump in 2022 operating costs
27/04/2022 16:08
MADRID, April 27 (Reuters) - Spain's Ebro Foods EBRO.MC
expects accelerating inflation to push up 2022 operating costs
by 60 million euros ($63 million) more than anticipated, largely
due to a Spanish transport strike and Russia's invasion of
Ukraine.
As wheat and energy costs have soared in recent weeks
following Russia's invasion, the owner of brands such as Tilda
rice and Garofalo pasta said on Wednesday it estimates operating
costs of 234.4 million euros in 2022.
Ebro Foods said it does not have any exposure to Russia or
Ukraine, but the war has had "considerable collateral impacts",
mainly in fresh waves of cost inflation for raw and auxiliary
materials, transport, energy and labour costs.
It also mentioned a transport strike in Spain in March,
which broke out in response to rising fuel costs and caused huge
traffic jams across the country, leading some factories to halt
production as they could not guarantee deliveries would be
received on time.
"(The strike) had an impact on shelf stock, as consumers
have been bulk buying certain products and brands, while other
products were out of stock as they could not be delivered to our
customers on time or in the right way," Ebro said in an earnings
presentation.
Ebro Foods' first-quarter net profit dropped 21.4% after it
booked a hefty gain from the sale of its North American pasta
business in the same period of last year.
Profit from continuing operations rose by 14.5% to 41.5
million euros over the same period.
($1 = 0.9495 euros)
(Reporting by Emma Pinedo Editing by Nathan Allen and Mark
Potter)
((emma.pinedo@thomsonreuters.com; +918 35 68 34;))