LONDON (Reuters) - British American Tobacco L:BATS reported lower revenue for the latest quarter, hurt by foreign exchange rates and a slight decline in the number of cigarettes sold.
The maker of Pall Mall and Lucky Strike cigarettes said revenue for the three months ended March 31 fell 12 percent at current spot rates. Excluding the impact of currency, revenue rose 2 percent.
Volume, which measures the amount of tobacco sold, fell 1 percent.
Still, the company's chief executive said in a statement he "remains confident of delivering consistent earnings growth" this year, though performance will be more skewed to the second half than in previous years, due to the timing of price increases and foreign exchange impacts.
(Reporting by Martinne Geller; Editing by David Holmes)