21st Apr 2016 09:56
LONDON (Alliance News) - SABMiller PLC on Thursday said it suffered a drop in group net production revenue in its recently-ended financial year but achieved growth in beverage volume, as it was once again hit by unfavourable foreign exchange rates.
The beer and soft drinks giant said total NPR fell by 8% in the year ended March 31, while beverage volume grew by 2%. On an organic constant currency basis, total NPR would have risen by 5%.
SABMiller said lager volume grew by 1%, as soft drinks volume increased by 6%, but NPR was once again hit by the depreciation of its key operating currencies against the dollar, something which has been harming the global drinks producer for some time now.
Geographically, Latin America and Africa performed strongly, while Asia Pacific, Europe and North America saw mixed performances.
In Latin America, NPR growth of 8% on a constant currency basis was underpinned by a strong performance in Colombia and volume growth of 5%, supported by selective price increases and a favourable brand mix. Lager volume rose by 6%, while soft drinks volume was up by 4%. Peru also performed well.
In Africa, constant currency NPR grew by 11% as volume increased by 6%, again supported by selective price increases. Lager volume rose by 5% and soft drinks volume was up by 8%. The South African business and its subsidiary businesses in Tanzania, Mozambique, Zambia and Nigeria all performed strongly.
Meanwhile, Asia Pacific achieved 3% growth in NPR in constant currencies, but saw a 1% decline in volume. NPR was boosted by growth in both Australia and China, but a volume decline in China offset a marginal rise in volume in Australia.
In Europe, constant currency NPR was up by 2% while volume was in line with the prior year, as 2% growth in soft drinks offset a 1% decline in lager. The Czech Republic, Slovakia and the UK all performed well, but Poland suffered a fall in both NPR and volume.
Finally, North America NPR was in line with the prior year on a constant currency basis, as volume fell by 1%.
SABMiller is in the process of being taken over by Belgian-American drinks company Anheuser-Busch InBev SA in a GBP71.00 billion deal. The merger will create by far the biggest beer business in the world with a market capitalisation of around USD280.0 billion. The pair are currently the world's first and second largest brewers, respectively.
"We have had a strong year and increased momentum in the second half across all our regions notwithstanding economic volatility and the potential distraction of the AB InBev offer. Our results reflect our strategy to expand the beer category and to grow and premiumise our diverse brand portfolios," SAB Miller Chief Executive Alan Clark said in a statement.
By Karolina Kaminska; [email protected] @KarolinaAllNews
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