However he said increased promotional and marketing activity encouraged many customers to switch to buying products for inside DIY instead.
Philip Morris USA will increase promotional spending in the second half of the year in the face of overall retail share declines in the first six months of the year.
The Kellogg Company said yesterday that its quarterly earnings fell slightly as a result of a higher tax rate, increased promotional spending and expenses related to restructuring.
The company has also started a plan to increase promotional spending and reduce the time it takes to put an idea on store shelves by half.
And now it says it will have to "increase promotional activity" - in other words, subsidise sales of - the PlayBook "to drive sell-through to end customers".
In September, the company lowered its outlook, calling for earnings of $1.45 to $1.75 a share, down from an earlier call of $2.20 to $2.30 a share, as it increased promotional spending in response to increased competition.
Dean's shares fell by as much as 5.3percentt yesterday after the company, the nation's largest dairy, also said it would sharply increase promotional spending in 2003, with the bulk of the cost aimed at the first half.
For the quarter, earnings from operations remained nearly unchanged at $267 million as higher selling prices were offset by a 2percentt drop in the number of cigarettes sold, higher charges from lawsuit settlements and increased promotional spending.
The company is benefiting from product launches, increased promotional activity, and improved international sales.
