First-half organic sales grew 4.3%, fractionally below the Visible Alpha consensus of 4.4% and ahead of Jefferies' estimate of 4%. Volumes fell 7.5%, worse than the consensus estimate of a 6.8% decline, while pricing contributed 11.8% to growth. The segment's operating profit fell to CHF 186 million from CHF 200.9 million a year earlier, while its operating margin narrowed to 15.7% from 16.1%. Organic sales grew 12.7%, well ahead of the consensus estimate of 7.3% and Jefferies' own forecast of 10%. Operating profit in the region surged to CHF 62.7 million from CHF 25.6 million, with the margin widening 4.5 percentage points year-on-year to 7.7%.