SABMiller’s first half in line with expectations

It always seemed like a lame excuse, but obviously the weather has become the determining factor in beer sales in Europe. On 17 October 2013, brewer SABMiller said that its performance for the six months to 30 September 2013 has been in line with expectations: strong volume growth at its African business managed to offset a challenging environment in parts of Europe.

SABMiller reported mixed results for Europe. Volumes rose 5 percent in the UK but fell 10 percent in Poland and 7 percent in the Czech Republic, mostly due to bad summer weather. In Latin America, lager volumes were up 1 percent despite disruptive events in Colombia, its biggest market, and an excise increase in Peru. Fortunately, volumes in Africa rose 9 percent in the same period.

The company reported total beverage volumes up 2 percent in the six months to the end of September 2013 with lager volumes up 1 percent and soft drinks volumes up 5 percent.

It said that net revenue had risen 4 percent over the six months but had accelerated in the second quarter to rise 6 percent.

SABMiller’s CEO Alan Clark commented that the financial performance was in line with expectations and he remained confident about the long term growth prospects for the group.