PARIS, Jan. 23, 2002 (PRIMEZONE) -- L'Oreal (Paris Stock Exchange:OR):
The consolidated sales of L'Oreal in 2001 reached E 13.7 billion, in line with the group's expectations.
The sales growth rate compared with 2000 was 8.4%.
Exchange rate fluctuations, still positive at 0.5% at the end of September, had a 0.3% negative effect. The growth rate excluding exchange rate fluctuations was thus 8.7%.
In structural terms, the positive net impact of disposals and acquisitions in 2000 and 2001, which was 2.4% up to the end of September, amounted to 1.6% for the whole year.
In 2001, the group made two acquisitions: BioMedic, which specializes in skin care products to accompany dermatological and plastic surgery treatments, and Colorama, a Brazilian mass-market make-up brand.
On a like-for-like basis, i.e. with an identical structure and exchange rates, the group sales grew by 7.1%.
Sales Growth by Sector and Area:
E millions Growth Excl. exch. Rate
fluctuations
Group sales
by sector:
- Cosmetics 13,394 +8.7% +9.1%
- Dermatology (a) 292 +11.3% + 10.9%
Cosmetics sales
by area:
- Western Europe 6,580 +5.6% +5.8%
- North America 4,257 +14.0% +11.0%
- Rest of the World 2,557 +8.8% +14.9%
(a) L'Oreal Group share: 50%.
The Group's cosmetics sector continued to grow faster than the world market. This achievement can be attributed to strong international growth combined with the successful worldwide roll-out of the group's core brands.
Fourth quarter sales were satisfactory (up by 6.2% like-for-like), with good growth in Western Europe (up by 5.8%) and continuing strong growth in the Rest of the World (up by 13.8%). In North America, sales advanced by 2.2%: some American retailers cut inventories sharply following the tragic events of 11th September.
The dermatology sector continued to achieve rapid growth worldwide.
Confidence Confirmed for Full-Year Results
Based on the above figures, L'Oreal confirms that it again expects to achieve strong profit growth.
Provisional results will be published on Thursday, February 21, 2002 and the audited results on Tuesday, March 26, 2002.
For further information, please consult your bank, broker or financial institution, your usual newspapers or the Internet: http://www.loreal-finance.com and http://www.loreal-actionnaire.com, or call :+33 1 58 13 51 36.