COMPANIES
SABMiller's beer volume up 5%
Posted Thu, 13 Apr 2006
SABMiller's expansion into China helped to boost beer volumes for the global brewing giant, with volumes rising five percent for the past financial year, the group said on Wednesday.
Even though its newly acquired South American business was not included in the volumes, the group said that volumes in South America for the six months to the beginning of April was seven percent up on the previous year.
Peru saw a particularly strong increase in beer volumes.
Europe was boosted by countries such as Russia, Poland and Romania, the group said, with lager volumes for the region climbing five percent in the year to April.
China was however the star performer, with the country recording an increase in organic lager volume of 14 percent for the year. In the combined African and Asian market, beer volume rose by one percent.
South Africa, due to poor summer weather which affected normal drinking volumes and the absence of an Easter trading period in the financial
year, was one of the few underperforming markets, SABMiller said. Volume sales inched up one percent.
In the struggling Central American market, beer volumes fell by five percent — although carbonated soft drink volumes picked up by six percent.
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