Heineken Ireland said today that turnover in the first six months of the year was €150m, and that it now holds 21% of the beer market in Ireland, an increase of 1.2% on the same period in 2005.
Heineken Ireland said it now accounts for 29.3% of the total larger market in Ireland, with sales of Coors draught brands up 40% in the first half.
Gerrit Van Loo, MD of Heineken Ireland, said there is a turnaround in the beer market with ontrade sales reversing the negative market trends since 2000.
Meanwhile, its parent company Heineken reported a 25% increase in net profit in the first half, driven by success of its Heineken beer brand.
The Dutch brewing giant said net profit leapt to €433m in the first half on an 11% increase in sales to €5.7 billion.
Excluding one-off effects, such as an exceptional gain of €28m booked in the first half, the net profit figure rose by 13.7%.
Global sales of the Heineken brand rose 12.7% to 11 million hectolitres. The brand performed strongly in the Americas, Central and Eastern Europe and Africa, Heineken said.
Looking ahead to full-year results, Heineken reiterated its forecast for net profit growth of slightly above 10% on the same asset base as 2005.
It expects positive trends in key markets and the strong growth of the Heineken brand to continue, though in the second half 'the comparison with the prior year will be more challenging than in the first'.
