Fuller's enjoys ‘good' Christmas

Pub group Fuller, Smith & Turner had a "good" Christmas, with many of its managed houses enjoying record weeks.

The company, which reported on trading for the 42 weeks up to 19 January 2013, made no mention of the snow that hit much of the country in mid January.

It reported a 4.5% rise in like-for-like sales in its managed pubs and hotels for the nine weeks to 19 January 2013.

This helped bring like-for-like sales for the 42 weeks up to 2.6% from 2.1% after 33 weeks.

Like-for-like profits in its tenanted inns division grew 1% for the 42 weeks, having been level after 33 weeks.

Total beer volumes in the Fuller's Beer Company remained level, as they were after 33 weeks.

The company bought two managed pubs in Bath on 1 November for £7.5m during the period.

Michael Turner, chairman, said: "UK consumers enjoyed themselves in our pubs and hotels over the festive period. While the economic outlook for 2013 remains uncertain, our long term strategy and focus on quality continue to serve us well and the strong performance of our acquisitions and refurbishments give us confidence to keep on investing for the future."