(Alliance News) - Adnams PLC on Wednesday reported a widened annual loss in 2022, a year it described as "at least as challenging as during the Covid-19 pandemic."

The brewer, distiller and retailer posted a pretax loss of GBP1.2 million last year, widened from GBP902,000 the year before.

This came as operating expenses grew to GBP65.5 million from GBP60.2 million, and the company recorded a GBP212,000 loss on financial instruments at fair value, compared to none the year prior.

Adnams said it worked "extremely hard" during the year to mitigate inflation, control expenses, and manage cash flows. However, it said it had "no alternative" other than to pass most of the increased costs through to customers, adding that it was "no overstatement" to suggest the business environment has been "at least as challenging as during the Covid-19 pandemic."

More positively, the Southwold, England-based firm saw its turnover grow 12% year-on-year to GBP64.2 million, from GBP57.4 million. Adnams said this reflect "buoyant" trading in the early months of the year and said the figure "would have been higher" had demand not suffered as consumer confidence "fell away."

Chair Jonathan Adnams said: "In the early months of 2022 the beer market began its journey back to health, and customers were clearly pleased to be visiting pubs and bars again throughout our heartland and London. Our retail shops, hotels and pubs enjoyed a good beginning to the year, enabling the payment of an interim dividend."

The company paid an interim dividend of 156 pence per B share and 39p per A share in February but did not recommend a final dividend on Wednesday.

Shares in the Adnams were untraded in London on Wednesday morning at 6,850p each.

The company said it will release a trading update on June 30.

By Heather Rydings, Alliance News senior economics reporter

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