April 20, 2006	Thursday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 21, 1427

NEW YORK, April 19: Soft drink powerhouse Coca-Cola Co. reported on Wednesday first-quarter net income up 10 per cent to $1.1 billion even though revenues remained flat.

Earnings amounted to 47 cents a share but included charges for impairment of assets and investments in Asian bottling operations. Without those, the profit would be 49 cents per share, a penny better than the average Wall Street estimate.

Revenue reached $5.23 billion from $5.21 billion in the same period a year ago, slightly below Wall Street estimates.

“This quarter underscores that we are on track to deliver on our long-term growth targets,” chairman and chief executive Neville Isdell said.

“Spurred by innovation and execution in key markets and increasing success in stabilising some challenging ones, we effectively balanced results across our global operations to deliver five per cent volume growth — three per cent in carbonated and 11 per cent in noncarbonated beverages — ahead of our long-term target.”—AFP