Atlanta, Apr 24 (AP) Coca-Cola Co. reported higher-than-expected sales in the first quarter as it continued to hike prices and saw its business in China improve.

Revenue rose 5 per cent to USD 11 billion for the January-March period, the company said Monday. That beat Wall Street's expectations. Analysts polled by FactSet had forecast revenue of USD 10.8 billion.

Also Read | Sudan Crisis: India Begins 'Operation Kaveri' To Rescue Indians Stranded From Violence-Hit North African Country.

Adjusted for one-time items, the Atlanta beverage giant earned 68 cents per share. That also beat analysts' forecast of 65 cents.

Pricing and mix -which includes changes in package sizes- contributed 11 per cent to its revenue growth while concentrate sales rose 1 per cent. The company has said it expects to see slower growth this year as prices moderate. Price and mix grew by 12 per cent in each of the previous three quarters.

Also Read | Sudan Crisis: France Evacuates 388 People of 28 Countries From Violence-Hit North African Country, Including Indian Nationals.

Unit case volumes jumped 10 per cent in Asia as COVID-related shutdowns ended in China. Coke said it also grew its business in India by adding retail partners offering promotions on multi-packs.

In North America, sales were flat. Higher sales of soft drinks, juice and dairy were offset by lower sales of water, tea and coffee. Case volumes fell in Europe, where growth in some markets was offset by the suspension of business in Russia and the February earthquake in Turkiye.

Operating income fell 1 per cent as Coke invested heavily in marketing. The company announced in February that it was among the first to partner with the artificial intelligence company Open AI and the consulting firm Bain and Co. to experiment with ChatGPT and DALL-E in its marketing.

Last month, Coke launched a promotion that lets customers make digital art using material from the company's archives. Coke also launched a campaign for its Smartwater brand that targeted consumers using geolocation apps.

Coke's shares rose 1 per cent in premarket trading Monday. (AP)

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)