Heineken, the world’s second largest-brewer, saw its global shipments rise 4.3% in the first quarter of the year with significant growth in Asia.
Profits fell to €260 million from €293 million a year earlier on a reported basis, the company said.
Consolidated beer volume was up by 11.3% in the company’s Asia Pacific unit. In Vietnam, beer volume was up double digit, driven by the strong performance of the Tiger brand and favourable timing of the Vietnamese New Year. However, in Indonesia beer volume was down double digit due to tourism disruption following the volcanic eruption in Bali last year.
Heineken – which owns brands such as Birra Moretti, Amstel and Cruzcampo – saw its shipments decline in Europe by 1.7% which it put down to the cold weather. An earlier Easter partially offset the poor results. Performance was strong in Italy where beer volume grew double digit, partly supported by increased promotional activity.
In its Americas division, beer volumes grew 6.8% with the Tecate, Dos Equis and Heineken all performing strongly in Mexico.
In Brazil, beer volume grew double digit. Heineken, Amstel, Sol and the beer portfolio acquired from Brasil Kirin continued to deliver double-digit volume growth.
Heineken CEO Jean-François van Boxmeer said: “Performance in the first quarter was in line with expectations, with volume growth benefiting from an earlier timing of Easter this year and a slow start last year.
“The Heineken brand grew by 8.1% and we saw continued growth momentum in key markets around the world. In Europe, volumes were negatively impacted by cold weather across the region. Our full year guidance remains unchanged.”
During its first quarter, Heineken opened its seventh brewery in Mexico following a $500m investment and partnered with Infor to optimise its production capacity.
Heineken stressed that the first quarter is seasonally less significant in terms of both volume and profit to its full-year results.
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