MORRISON Bowmore Distillers nearly doubled its pre-tax profits last year to more than £6 million as its worldwide sales surged, accounts filed with Companies House reveal.

Its 84% jump in pre-tax profits to £6.11m in 2011, from £3.33m in the prior year, was achieved on the back of a 7% rise in turnover from £41.5m to £44.6m.

In their report on the accounts, directors of the Glasgow-based company declared that its single malt brands of Bowmore, Auchentoshan, Glen Garioch and McClellands all achieved an increase in turnover and profits last year. And they highlighted heavy investment in these brands.

The directors said: "The growth of the company continues, with excellent results reported for the 12 months to December 2011.

"The company continues the strategy of focusing investment behind our single malt brands, with the benefits of this strategy reflected in the improved financial performance."

The jump in turnover and profits at Morrison Bowmore, which is run by chief executive Mike Keiller and owned by Japanese drinks giant Suntory, underlines the extent to which the Scotch whisky sector has continued to enjoy boom times in spite of the global economic troubles.

Industry figures published in March showed Scotch whisky exports hit a record £4.2 billion in shipment value last year, up 23% on 2010.

The Scotch Whisky Association, which published the figures, highlighted growth in exports to countries across Asia and Latin America. It also flagged a 31% leap in Scotch whisky exports last year to the US, to £655m, and cited a 27% jump in sales to France to £535m. The US and France are the two biggest export markets for Scotch whisky.

Morrison Bowmore's accounts, which have just become available from Companies House, show that its total borrowings jumped from £25.1m to £29.7m last year. This reflected investment in whisky stocks.

The accounts showed that the vast bulk of the borrowings, £28.15m at December 31 last year, was in the form of a loan from within the Suntory group. This loan increased from £25.1m at the start of last year. Interest payable on this loan rose to £703,000 last year, from £675,000 in 2010.

The directors stated: "Borrowings increased during the year as the company invested in the whisky stock of its single-malt brands."

Morrison Bowmore's accounts showed the value of whisky stocks jumped from £56.3m to £62.1m during last year.

The average number of staff employed by Morrison Bowmore rose to 199 in 2011, from 191 in 2010.

Employees are split between Morrison Bowmore's head office at Springburn in Glasgow and three distilleries, Bowmore on Islay, Glen Garioch at Oldmeldrum in Aberdeenshire, and Auchentoshan, by Clydebank, near Glasgow.

Morrison Bowmore noted on its website that nearly half of its employees "have been with us for over 10 years, some for a lot longer", and added: "There's a lot of expertise within our business."

The accounts showed that the remuneration of the highest-paid director of Morrison Bowmore rose to £381,000 last year, from £362,000 in 2010. Total boardroom pay increased from £682,000 to £718,000.

Suntory acquired a stake in Morrison Bowmore in 1989. It took 100% ownership in 1994. The Japanese owner has cited the success of its strategy of making Morrison Bowmore a profitable business by reducing reliance on the volatile bulk whisky market and focusing on building the brands.

Morrison Bowmore directors note in their report on the latest accounts that sales per employee rose from £217,000 in 2010 to £224,000 in 2011. Profit per employee increased from £17,000 in 2010 to £31,000 last year.