Electrocomponents H1 underlying sales rise on international demand

Oct 2(Reuters) - Electrocomponents Plc (LSE: ECM.L - news) , a British distributor of electronic products for engineers, reported a 3 percent rise in first-half underlying sales, helped by strong performance in its international market.

The company, which distributes 500,000 products, sourced from over 2,500 suppliers, said international sales rose 5 percent in the six months ended Sept. 30, with revenue from North America increasing 10 percent and from continental Europe rising 2 percent.

Sales in Asia Pacific grew 5 percent, while revenue from its UK business declined 2 percent. (1 US dollar = 0.6166 British pound) (Reporting by Noor Zainab Hussain in Bangalore; Editing by Sunil Nair)