German sporting goods group Adidas has achieved robust growth at the start of the year - with the exception of the important North American market.
There, sales in the first quarter fell by 4% on a currency-adjusted basis, the company announced when presenting its final figures on Tuesday.
Wholesale in North America had recently suffered from continued high stock levels.
In contrast, currency-adjusted sales in China rose by 8%. One of the biggest growth drivers was Latin America with an increase of 18%. Europe also recorded double-digit growth of 14%.
Group sales rose by 4% to just under €5.5 billion ($5.9 billion), with negative currency effects having a negative impact. Adjusted for currency effects, growth amounted to 8%.
The bottom line was a profit of €170 million, after a loss of €39 million. Adidas had already presented preliminary figures for the quarter in mid-April and raised its forecast for the year.
Overall, inventories continued to normalize, decreasing by 22% or €1.2 billion to €4.4 billion.
