Nichols investors bitter over sugar taxes

The price of shares in AIM-listed drinks producer Nichols (LON:NICL) dropped by 12.94% to 1,480p (as of 12:55 GMT) after warning that incoming Middle Eastern taxes would impact next year’s results. The company said it was on track to meet guidance for 2019 despite the slowdown in the UK soft drinks market.

However, incoming taxes on sweetened drinks in Saudi Arabia and the UAE are expected to put a dent in results and cannot be avoided through reformulation. The company said that the impact of this would not clear until after the Ramadan period, but that the region remains key to the firm’s strategy.