July 22 (Reuters) - Swiss chocolate maker Lindt & Spruengli (LISN.S) , opens new tab on Tuesday raised its organic sales growth forecast citing customer loyalty despite steep price hikes, with a growing taste for more premium products especially in Europe.

Shoppers continued to bear the brunt of high cocoa prices as Lindt raised prices of its products by another 15.8% in the first half of 2025.

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The maker of Lindor chocolate balls said it expected organic sales growth of between 9% and 11% for the full year, after previously guiding for 7% to 9%.

It posted sales of 2.35 billion Swiss francs ($2.95 billion) for the January-June period, up 11.2% organically. That beat the mean estimate of 2.30 billion from analysts polled by LSEG.

Analysts have said Lindt benefits from its premium positioning and strong pricing power despite cost challenges, and its performance should be further supported as the cocoa inflation eases.

London cocoa futures (.LCCc2) , opens new tab have nearly halved after reaching historic highs in 2024, but despite the sharp drop, cocoa prices remain clearly above the historical average.

Growth in the first half was driven by a dynamic performance of core products such as Lindor and Lindt Excellence and product innovation including the Lindt Dubai Style Chocolate, it added.

Europe showed strong organic growth of 17.7%, while North American sales grew just 3.6%, below the company's expectations, amid a weak consumer sentiment.

Lindt continues to evaluate its sourcing strategy ahead of the expected imposition of new U.S. tariffs on August 1, a company spokesperson told Reuters.

It produces 95% of the chocolates it sells in the U.S. at its five factories in the country, which also supply less than half of the products sold in Canada.

Lindt had said in March it would supply chocolate made in Europe to Canada to avoid reciprocal tariffs on U.S. goods, but later said it had not adapted the strategy yet, after several changes to tariffs placed on imports and exports from the U.S.

($1 = 0.7975 Swiss francs)

https://www.reuters.com/business/lindt-lifts-outlook-shoppers-taste-chocolate-trumps-high-prices-2025-07-22/