DUBLIN (Reuters) – Irish food ingredients multinational Kerry Group sees no significant risk to its business from either the upcoming U.S. elections or trade tensions with China, Chief Executive Edmond Scanlon said in an interview on Thursday.
The food and beverage sector is likely to be “pretty immune” to changes in the regulatory environment and changes in consumer behaviour in the wake of the Nov. 5 election in the United States, Kerry’s largest market, said Scanlon.
“We wouldn’t be concerned about it at all,” he said.
Asked if any post-election cut to U.S. corporate tax rates to levels closer or lower than Ireland might prompt the company to move its domicile, Scanlon said the company “wouldn’t be making any rash decisions on moving anywhere”.
Donald Trump has pledged to reduce the corporate tax rate to 15% from 21% for companies that make their products in the U.S., in line with the headline rate for larger companies in Ireland.
Trade tensions between China and Europe and the United States are not a significant risk due to the fact that most of Kerry’s sales in China are produced locally, Scanlon said.
“In China, we’re very, very local,” he said. “There isn’t a huge amount of trade across borders.”
Scanlon was speaking following the publication of results for the third quarter in which Kerry reiterated its forecast of full-year growth in adjusted earnings per share growth of 7%-10% despite a “relatively muted” global market.
Kerry clients have engaged in promotional activity in the United States, but those promotional activities “are having a very limited impact actually, in driving demand,” Scanlon said.
(Writing by Conor Humphries; editing by Sarah Young and David Evans)
