ROMANIA: SABMiller’s revenues in Romania, +5% in H1 | Progresiv

SABMiller’s revenues in Romania increased by 5% in the first half (the period from April to September), the advance being supported by rising sales for the brands Ursus, Peroni Nastro Azzuro and Pilsnes Urquell, as well as improvements in the income and expenses management program within the Romanian operations, according to the financial report.

The performance in Romania contrasts with the results at European level, where the beer maker reported between April and September a decrease of 18% in revenue. This is primarily due to the decline in Poland: 14% lower revenue at constant exchange rates and a decrease of 12% in volumes compared to the same period of 2014.

Thus, the beer volumes in Europe declined 4% in the first half of 2016 fiscal year, to 24.7 million hectoliters, while sales of soft drinks grew by 1% to 9.82 million hectoliters. Overall, sales of beer and juices of SABMiller in Europe fell by 3%, standing at 34.5 million hectoliters, compared to 35.62 million hectoliters between April-September 2014.

SABMiller is present in Romania through Ursus Breweries, the largest player on the Romanian market based on turnover, of 1.4 billion lei (320 million euros) in 2014. The company owns three breweries locally – in Brasov, Buzau and Timisoara and a small capacity production line in Cluj.

The group, with South African and American ownership, has around 69,000 employees in more than 80 countries. In the financial year ended at 31 March 2015, SABMiller reported revenues of over 26 billion dollars.