April 11 (Reuters) - Swiss fragrance and flavour maker Givaudan reported first-quarter sales above market expectations on Thursday, driven by improving volume demand and good business momentum.

Its revenue in the January-March period rose 2.8% to 1.82 billion Swiss francs ($1.99 billion), compared with analysts' average forecast of 1.78 billion francs in a poll compiled by the company.

Easing destocking trends are supporting Givaudan's return to stable volumes after a wave of inventory reductions and lower demand weighed on volumes throughout last year.

"We are pleased with our very good start to 2024, driven by strong momentum in our established business and a high level of new wins," the Geneva-based group said in a statement.

On a like-for-like basis, sales rose 12.6%, beating a consensus estimate for a 6.9% increase.

Sales at its Taste & Wellbeing business, representing more than a half of the group's total revenue, increased by 9.3% on a like-for-like basis, while sales at the Fragrance & Beauty unit were up 16.3% on the same basis.

Givaudan pointed to a particularly strong performance in the high growth markets for the fragrance unit, which is heavily exposed to demand for luxury goods. ($1 = 0.9127 Swiss francs) (Reporting by Jagoda Darlak and Tristan Veyet; Editing by Milla Nissi)