CADBURY SCHWEPPES REPORT STATIC FIRST HALF PROFITS

Melting moments: Cadbury Schweppes chief executive David Wellings (left) and Sir Dominic Cadbury did their bit for melting cholocate sales yesterday as the confectionery and soft drinks company reported static profits for the first half. The summer heatwave hit chocolate sales in Europe but the fall was more than compensated for by rising sales of Coca- Cola, 7-Up and new launches such as Oasis and Schizan.

The company said the integration of Dr Pepper group was going well following the pounds 1.7bn deal in January, though UK soft drinks margins were affected by the cola wars with the supermarket own labels. Pre-tax profits for the six months to June were unchanged at pounds 206m. Cadbury's share of the Camelot consortium which operates the National Lottery contributed pounds 2.4m.

Photograph: Jane Baker Investment Column, page 18