Reckitt Benckiser Group (LON:RB.) reported interim results which showed that a strong performance in developing markets offset a weak performance in Europe.
The producer of household, consumer healthcare and personal products is raising the interim dividend by 10 percent to 55 Pence a share.
The group booked revenues of £4.62 billion in the first half to end-June 2010, up 14 percent from 4.06 billion a year earlier. Pretax profit came in 7 percent higher year-on-year, at £1.04 billion.
On a like-for-like basis, total revenue was up 5 percent. Europe, which makes up 44 percent of revenues showed a 1 percent decline in like-for-like revenue performance, while sales into developing markets rose 14 percent on the same basis.
The company reiterated its full-year guidance of increasing revenues in 2011 by 12 percent or more compared to 2010, an inrease in net income by 10 percent year-on-year, and to deliver another year of above industry-average growth.