Premier Farnell emerges out of recession 'fast, early and well'

ELECTRONICS distributor Premier Farnell said the strong sales performance seen in the first four months of the financial year has continued into June with sales growing 29 per cent year on year.

Yesterday the Leeds-based group told investors about its plans for the next 1,000 days and the growth opportunities in the electronic component high service distribution market.

The group will report its second quarter results on September 9.

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Chief Executive Harriet Green said that customers cut their budgets during the economic downturn, but now they have more money to spend on research and development.

"We have come out of the recession fast, early and well," she said. "The recovery will be a little jerky, a little variable, but our aim is to get back to the size we were before the recession by the end of this year."

Last month the group reported a 71 per cent leap in first quarter profits as companies around the world start to re-invest in research and development.

The group, which supplies thousands of components ranging from LEDs to microchips and batteries, said pre-tax profits rose from 13m to 22m in the three months to April 30 on the back of strong sales growth.

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Analysts said the first quarter results were well ahead of their forecasts.

Premier, which counts Philips, Microsoft and Nokia among its customers, said its focus on the internet, instead of catalogues, had helped boost quarterly year-on-year sales by 20 per cent to 244m.

Ms Green said the demand for innovative technology in emerging markets has soared. The group saw sales growth of 76 per cent in Eastern Europe and emerging markets now account for 22 per cent of revenues.

The company saw accelerating sales in May with year-on-year revenue growth of 30 per cent.

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This week the group was named as the highest ranking FTSE 250 company in the new FTSE CDP Carbon Strategy 350 Index.

The index provides a 'carbon-tilted' version of the FTSE 350, based on constituents' exposure to carbon risk in comparison with their sector peers.

The index is designed to help retail and institutional investors manage the impact of climate change in their investments.

Premier's carbon reduction programme is in its fourth year and to date has achieved a 23 per cent reduction in emissions.

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