Coca-Cola said today it expects to report second-quarter worldwide unit case volume growth of about 4 per cent - within the range of analysts' forecasts - but sees currencies hurting this year's operating income more than it had expected.
The company said it now sees currencies hurting 2001 operating income by 4 to 5 per cent, while it had earlier expected an impact of 3 to 4 per cent.
While Coca-Cola did not provide any specific earnings-per-share guidance for the quarter, it says underlying earnings per share, before the effect of currency exchange, are "encouraging."
The company said volume trends are improving in the United States and Japan, and it is seeing continued strength in Asia and Africa, but operating environments in Germany and Turkey remain difficult.
Shares of Coca-Cola ended Wednesday up 23 cents at $44.18. In pre-market activity today, the stock traded at $44. The shares have under-performed against those of main rival PepsiCoby about 20 per cent since the beginning of the year.
Coca-Cola expects to release its second-quarter results in mid-July.