Nestle sales fall on strong franc

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ZURICH, April 16 (AFP): Swiss food giant Nestle said Friday its first quarter sales fell 9.3 per cent to 20.3 billion francs (15.7 billion euros, $22.7 billion), hit by the strong Swiss franc and costs arising from its sale of eyecare group Alcon. "Sales were impacted by -9.8 per cent from foreign exchange and by -5.9 per cent from divestitures net of acquisitions," the group said in a statement. The world's biggest food company also noted that the first three months of the year was marked by "high-impact events ranging from civil unrest and natural disasters to extreme volatility in raw material prices."