Britvic has reported a 4.8% increase in total branded revenue growth for the 12 weeks to 24 December 2006, compared with the same period last year.
The company said that stills revenue grew by 6.8% during the period, while sales of carbonates increased by 2.4%.
The company said it out-performed the market during the period with regard to stills, which reflected good performances from J20, Robinsons squash, and Fruit Shoot H2O.
The group also said it out-performed in carbonates as well, maintaining its volumes in a market that declined by 2.6%, primarily as a result of further market share gains by Pepsi.
In addition, Britvic's Average Realised Price increased, driven by its continued focus on promotional spend, against a period last year when there was significant margin pressure.
The group said that its International business achieved improved results, with distribution gains in both Sweden and Denmark.
It also said that trading in early 2007 has continued in line with the trend seen before Christmas.
The company said that while this trend is encouraging for carbonates, it remains cautious regarding the outlook for this category given the continued consumer focus on health and well being.
It said it was well placed to benefit from the anticipated growth in the stills market thanks to the strength of its existing brands and product portfolio.
The group said it believed that its position will be further improved by a number of new product launches, such as Robinsons Smooth Juice and Fruit Shoot 100% Juice, scheduled for the second half of the financial year.
