Carlsberg sells less beer in Eastern Europe
Good or bad is a matter of perspective. On 7 November 2012 Carlsberg reported that in the third quarter 2012 beer volumes declined 2 percent in its Eastern European unit (which is mainly Russia and the Ukraine), compared to the same period a year ago. In the January-through-September period the beer volume decline was even more pronounced: – 7 percent to 34.3million hl year-on-year.
However, the brewer said that for the third quarter in a row, its Russian market share improved to reach 38.9 percent. In Russia, Carlsberg’s unit Baltika is the market leader. Obviously, other brewers (i.e. AB-InBev and Efes) must have lost even more volume than Carlsberg in Russia this year to allow this to happen.
In the end, it’s not volumes and decimal changes in market share which matter. It’s profits. Carlsberg’s quarterly net profit dropped to DKK 2.14 billion (USD 368.3 million), from DKK 3.01 billion, in the year-ago period. Still, Carlsberg’s operating profit rose to DKK 3.60 billion from DKK 3.28 billion, while sales surged to DKK 18.81 billion from DKK 17.44 billion.
CEO Joergen Buhl Rasmussen was quoted as saying that the third-quarter result was in line with expectations and that the brewer was on track to meet its full-year outlook of flat operating profit but slightly increased net profit.
