Diageo reports double-digit sales growth for vodka and Scotch in India

Diageo said on November 5 that its vodka and Scotch whisky businesses posted double-digit organic net sales growth in India during the quarter that ended on September 30, giving the British drinks group one of its strongest category performances in a market it has identified as a key source of expansion.

The update came in the company’s fiscal 2027 first-quarter trading statement, which covered July through September. Diageo did not disclose exact growth rates for vodka or Scotch in India, but it said both categories grew at a double-digit pace from the same quarter a year earlier. The company also did not provide category-level sales values or shipment volumes for India, which means the statement shows growth in sales value rather than proving that volumes rose at the same rate.

The company’s regional comparison showed slower growth in Latin America and the Caribbean. Diageo said organic net sales for spirits in that region rose at a mid-single-digit rate, while Scotch whisky grew at a high-single-digit rate. That means Scotch also expanded there, but less strongly than in India based on the ranges the company provided.

The figures underline the different pace of demand across Diageo’s markets as it tries to offset weakness in North America. At the group level, reported net sales for the quarter rose 1.2% to $4.931 billion from $4.875 billion a year earlier. Organic net sales increased 1.4%, or 0.6% excluding East African Breweries Ltd., which Diageo said added 0.8% to group organic net sales growth. The company described the quarter as in line with its expectations and left its full-year guidance unchanged.

Diageo said Latin America and the Caribbean and Asia Pacific delivered mid-single-digit organic net sales growth in the quarter, while India and Europe, the Middle East and Africa rose at a low-single-digit rate. In North America, organic net sales declined at a mid-single-digit rate, which the company said reflected continued softness in the market. Chief Executive Dave Lewis said the company was focused on making its offer more competitive in North America and called that market its biggest challenge.

Within categories, Diageo said growth came from whisky, Guinness and Smirnoff ready-to-drink products. The India detail stood out because it pointed to strength in two major imported spirits segments, vodka and Scotch, at the same time. India has become increasingly important to global liquor companies because of its large consumer base, a rising premium spirits market and stronger long-term growth prospects than many mature Western markets.

The company did not say how much of the India gain came from pricing, product mix or volume. It also did not say whether the performance reflected broad-based demand across brands or gains in specific labels. Because the disclosure used growth bands rather than exact percentages, it is not possible to calculate the absolute increase in category sales in India or compare it precisely with other regions.

Still, the update suggests that Scotch remained one of Diageo’s stronger spirits categories across multiple markets in the quarter. In India, the double-digit increase in organic net sales for Scotch was stronger than the high-single-digit growth the company reported for the category in Latin America and the Caribbean. The same pattern applied more broadly to the company’s spirits business, with India showing stronger disclosed growth in vodka than the regional spirits growth rate reported for Latin America and the Caribbean.

Diageo is one of the world’s largest spirits companies, with brands spanning Scotch whisky, vodka, tequila, rum, beer and ready-to-drink products. In its annual report, the company said that according to IWSR, a drinks market research firm, it ranked first globally in international spirits by retail sales value in 2025. That scale means shifts in its category performance in large consumer markets such as India are closely watched by investors and competitors.

The company’s quarterly statement also pointed to mixed underlying trends in the business. Diageo said first-quarter organic growth excluding East African Breweries was 0.6%, with volume down 0.1% and price and mix up 0.7%. That indicates part of the group’s overall growth was supported by pricing and product mix rather than by broad volume expansion. The company’s reported figures were also partly offset by unfavorable foreign exchange movements and the effect of disposals.

Lewis said market conditions remained difficult and cited geopolitical uncertainty and the effect of the conflict in the Middle East on energy, supply and distribution. Even so, he said the first-quarter results represented a small step in the right direction while the company was making significant internal changes.

For the full fiscal year, Diageo kept its outlook for broadly flat organic net sales growth and low- to mid-single-digit organic operating profit growth. It said North America organic net sales were expected to decline at a mid-single-digit rate, assuming the market falls about 3% and that the company improves its share performance compared with fiscal 2026. Diageo also said it expected capital expenditure of about $1.25 billion, free cash flow of about $2 billion and a tax rate before exceptional items of about 25%.

The company said the first-quarter financials were unaudited. That matters because the category and regional details disclosed on November 5 were part of an interim trading statement rather than a full set of audited accounts. Even with that limitation, the update showed that India was one of the brighter spots in the quarter, especially for vodka and Scotch, two categories that posted stronger disclosed growth there than Scotch and total spirits did in Latin America and the Caribbean.