Coca-Cola says it will continue to raise prices this year

Coca-Cola president and chief financial officer John Murphy said the drinks giant would continue to increase prices in the second half of the year, as the company raised its forecasts on the back of resilient demand.

The US-based global soft-drinks maker reported on Wednesday that second-quarter revenue grew 6 per cent from a year ago to $12bn, beating analysts’ expectations as higher prices offset flat unit case volume.

The Fanta and Sprite maker raised prices 10 per cent in the three months to June 30, while volumes were flat in the same period, in a sign that consumers were accepting price increases. The company expects volumes to rise throughout the rest of the year.

Coca-Cola’s rival PepsiCo had reported average price increases of 15 per cent in the three months to June 17, while organic volume slipped 2.5 per cent.