Annual sales of Baileys Irish Cream worldwide have exceeded five million cases for the first time. In the year to the end of June, there was a 10 per cent increase on the previous year's sales volume, the Diageo annual results disclose.

Baileys sales in the past 12 months were 5.1 million cases, and Mr Clive Brownlee of Guinness UDV Ireland said it was now one of the world's top 10 drinks brands.

The figures for Baileys business, which is predominantly export-based, are not included in the Guinness UDV Ireland figures, which show that the group's sales in Ireland are now in excess of €1 billion (£787.4 million), an increase of 5 per cent, with operating profits of €254 million, up 12 per cent on the previous year.

Mr Brownlee said Irish turnover and operating profits were split roughly 80-20 between the brewing and spirits business. He said that sales volumes were level with last year and that this represented a very good performance "in an increasingly challenging marketplace".

Sales of Guinness stout were down 2.7 per cent but, with beer sales overall lower in the year, Guinness's market share stabilised at 34 per cent of the long drinks market. Mr Brownlee said Guinness had benefited from high-profile sponsorships such as the All-Ireland Hurling Championship and the Witness festival in Fairyhouse.

Budweiser was now the leading lager brand in Ireland and second only to Guinness stout in terms of sales. Sales of Carlsberg were slightly down while Harp remained the number one larger brand in Northern Ireland.

In the spirits part of the business, sales of Smirnoff Red and Smirnoff Ice grew by 9 per cent, but Mr Brownlee said the success of the new Smirnoff Ice brand had not come at the expense of Smirnoff Red. Sales of Bailey in Ireland were up 20 per cent.

The Guinness Storehouse visitor centre is set to have visitor numbers of more than 500,000 in its first year, an 11 per cent increase in the numbers that visited the former Guinness Hop Centre. Overall, Diageo profits rose 9 per cent to £1.98 billion sterling (€3.22 billion) with turnover up 5 per cent to £12.8 billion sterling boosted by strong growth in sales of Baileys, Johnnie Walker and Jose Cuervo tequila. Finance director Mr Nick Rose said underlying profits in the drinks business were up 14 per cent in line with expectations.