Danish brewer Carlsberg today reported quarterly results slightly above expectations as dwindling sales in Russia were partly offset by higher beer volumes in Asia and western Europe.
Revenue in eastern Europe tumbled 30% to 1.735 billion kroner (€233m), mostly as the result of the lower Russian rouble.
"Due to the difficult macro environment in the region, the Russian beer market declined by an estimated 9% and the Ukrainian beer market by an estimated 14%," the company said in a statement.
In January, Carlsberg closed two of its breweries in Russia - where its Baltika brand has a 38% market share - cutting its production capacity in the country by 15%.
The company said its earnings before interest, tax and special items rose 46% from a year ago to 661 million kroner, which was higher than the 562 million kroner consensus of analysts surveyed by news agency Ritzau.
The net loss for the period widened to 90 million kroner from 67 million, as revenue grew 4% to 13.471 billion, also slightly ahead of expectations.
The group reiterated that for the full year it expects operating profit to grow organically "by mid to high single digit percentages."
