Barry Callebaut posts lower volumes amid soaring cocoa prices

(Reuters) -Chocolate maker and cocoa processor Barry Callebaut on Wednesday reported a lower sales volume than expected for its first quarter, hit by customer-retailer pricing negotiations and delayed orders amidst record high cocoa prices.

The Switzerland-based group, which supplies chocolate for Unilever (LON:)'s soon-to-be-spun-off Magnum ice creams and Nestle (NSE:)'s KitKat bars, said its sales volume fell 2.7% to 565,000 tonnes in the quarter that ended on Nov. 30, compared with analysts' forecast of 568,000 tonnes in a company-provided consensus.

The company said it expected its full-year sales volume to fall by a low single-digit percentage. It had previously said it expected flat cocoa sales volume for the fiscal year, as the raw material trades in London at around 8,700 pounds ($10,737.54) per metric ton.

It also said it was issuing a bond worth 300 million Swiss francs ($331 million) to address the high costs and ensured liquidity.

($1 = 0.8102 pounds)

($1 = 0.9063 Swiss francs)