【正确答案】Although sales at both Rowe and Topco experienced a number of ups and downs over the time frame 1998-2002, sales figures at both companies showed a general upward trend. At the start of this period, Rowe sales stood somewhere above $30m. They remained almost unchanged the following year, before picking up dramatically in 2000 and reaching an all-time high of $70m in 2001. Sales few down slightly in the last year but remained twice as much as those of 1998.
Topco sales overtook the level of Rowe in 1998 ($46m compared to $34m). Its ad- vantage continued to enlarge the next year. Despite suffering a sharp fall in 2000, overall trend for the last three years was a stead rise. Both companies ended 2002 with turnover of around $65 with Topco outselling Rowe for the first time since 2000.