Irish fruit distributor Fyffes said today it expects annual profit growth to climb by a "mid-teen" percentage before interest and tax excluding one-time items.
The rise would be in line with expectations, it said.
Per-share profit will gain by a "low double-digit" percentage before one-time items, the company said in a statement this morning.
Sales are "well ahead" from a year ago so far in 2008, particularly in continental Europe, the statement shows.
Fyffes cautioned that further increases in selling prices will be necessary to make up for higher fruit and fuel expenses linked to surging commodity markets.
Producers across the food industry are charging more for their goods to help maintain margins as they pay more for edible commodities from wheat to milk.
"The increase in profits in 2008 will be significantly weighted towards the first half of the year, taking account of the relatively more difficult market conditions in the early part of last year," Fyffes said.
The earnings forecasts exclude goodwill charges, the company's share of the results of Blackrock International Land and a gain from a dispute involving distributor DCC. Earlier this month, DCC agreed to pay Fyffes and investors €41 million to settle a dispute over DCC executive chairman Jim Flavin's trading of Fyffes shares.
Bloomberg