Asia Pacific Breweries Ltd (APB) announced another year of strong growth in revenue and organic profit for FY2007, in a press release, November 13.

Attributable net profit before exceptional items (APBE) posted an organic growth of S$22.8 million or 20% to reach S$138.3 million. Taking into account non-recurring items, translation differences, gestation losses and reinvestment credit, APBE improved by S$0.9 million or 1% to S$132.6 million.

Organically, Group profit before interest and tax (PBIT) rose 17% or S$39.7 million to S$269.5 million. Including non-recurring items, translation differences, gestation losses and reinvestment credit, PBIT stood at S$255.2 million, representing an increase of S$5.5 million or 2% over last year.

Gestation losses refer to the first three years' performance of greenfield operations. The non-recurring items refer to a one-time royalty adjustment in Vietnam which improved FY2006's PBIT by S$20.7 million and APBE by S$16.5 million. For FY2007, a reinvestment credit was included and this added S$4.0 million to PBIT and APBE. This reinvestment credit was granted to APB for reinvesting dividends back into Vietnam for further business expansion.

Group revenue for the year increased by 17% to S$1.8 billion.

The earnings per share (before exceptional items) amounted to 51.3 cents compared with 51.2 cents in the previous ...More Info

Tsingtao Brewery Co, China's second-biggest beer maker, plans to raise as much as 1.5 billion Yuan (202 million U.S. dollars) selling bonds on the Chinese mainland to expand production in the world's biggest beer market, Shanghai Daily reported November 12.

The company will sell 6-year bonds with call warrants for shares, it said in a Hong Kong Stock Exchange statement. Shareholders will vote on the plan on Dec. 27, it added.

Tsingtao Brewery will add one million tons of new production capacity next year to increase sales, Chairman Li Guirong said on Aug. 12. The company's sales trail China Resources Snow Breweries Co, which is 49 percent owned by SABMiller Plc.

Scottish & Newcastle (S&N), the brewer that is under siege from Carlsberg and Heineken, is close to agreeing a sale of its loss-making French distribution business for up to €200 million (£140 million), The Times published November 13.

The company, which has rebuffed the advances of its European rivals, is understood to be in final talks to sell its troubled Elidis business to C10, an independent rival that in May signed a distribution deal with InBev, the owner of Stella Artois.

Analysts believe that S&N is hoping to anounce a deal with C10 in tandem with a scheduled trading update next Tuesday.

John Dunsmore, the new S&N chief executive, will use the trading update to outline his strategic vision for the group as he seeks to fend off the indicative 720p-a-share offer from Carlsberg and Heineken.

Although the group has been discussing a sale of Elidis since spring, well before the joint approach from its rivals, S&N will be keen to show that it is making progress in sorting out Brasseries Kronenbourg, its embattled French division.

At its interim results in August, Tony Froggatt, Mr Dunsmore’s predecessor, admitted that Elidis’s problems had continued in the first half, adding: “We are working to stabilise the business. ...More Info

Beer drinkers are facing an increase in the cost of their favourite tipples by the start of next year, Scotsman reported November 12.

Brewers will be forced to put up the price of cans by an average of 70p on a pack of four and £2 on larger multi-packs because of the increase in costs of raw materials.

Scottish & Newcastle, Coors Brewers, SABMiller and Anheuser-Busch have each been affected by steep increases in the price of malt, barley, glass and aluminium.

Paul Heggarty, of Coors Brewers, explained: "We are facing very severe price pressures for barley as well as other raw materials. The increase in prices will ultimately be passed on to the consumer."

Barley prices have risen in Europe partly because of poor harvests caused by heavy rains, reducing yield and quality, while crops in Australia were hit hard by droughts.

Fuel, aluminum and glass prices have soared in the last several years.

Barley and wheat prices have also skyrocketed as more farmers plant corn to meet increasing demands for biofuels such as ethanol.

Graham Bell, of the Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce, said that it had long been concerned with the issue of food prices.

Mr Bell said: "A sudden thirst for biofuels has imposed an ...More Info

Shipments of beer and quasi-beer beverages in Japan in October grew 0.8 pct from a year before to 39,329,000 cases as robust shipments of the so-called third-segment beverages offset sluggish demand for "happoshu," Jiji Press reported November 12.

Each case contains the equivalent of 20 633-milliliter bottles.

Shipments of third-segment beverages, which have little or no malt content, increased 5.2 pct to 9,180,000 cases, setting a record for the month of October, thanks to a string of new product launches.

Beer shipments rose 0.1 pct to 20,370,000 cases as demand from restaurant grew.

Meanwhile, shipments of "happoshu" low-malt quasi-beer beverages fell 1.8 pct to 9,780,000 cases, marking the sixth consecutive drop.

Among major brewers, Asahi Breweries Ltd., Kirin Brewery Co. and Suntory Ltd. posted rises, while Sapporo Breweries Ltd. logged a slight fall.

The producers of the Bergenbier, Timisorena and Golden Brau brands boast a cumulated value of over 1.1 billion euros, according to the Yearbook "Top 100 Most Valuable Companies in Romania," compiled by Ziarul Financiar in partnership with investment firm Capital Partners, Ziarul Financiar published November 14.

The most valuable company in the beer industry was the local branch of the Dutch producer Heineken, which was evaluated by Capital Partners at 455 million euros, up 40% against the previous year. The fact that the top three players on the beer market are present among the top 100 most valuable companies in the Romanian industry proves once more how competitive this market is, given that no other companies in the dairy, bakery, charcuterie and spirits industry managed to exceed the 200 billion-euro mark. In 2006 Heineken Romania, Ursus Breweries and InBev Romania posted an over 500 million-euro cumulated turnover, and profit worth over 80 million euros.

The malt market is to turn from today’s deficit situation into an overcapacity in the next 2-3 years, according to the conclusions made by market analysts.

Soufflet alone, the world’s largest malt producer, is planning to increase its production capacity by 230,000 tonnes with new openings in France and Romania by 2008-2009. Malteurop, another big player of the malt market, has made new construction program for 300,000 tonnes: 100,000 tonnes in Spain operational for 2008, 100,000 tonnes in Poland for 2009 and 100,000 tonnes in Ukraine for 2010.

Irish-owned Greencore Malt is increasing capacity at its Buckie plant in North-east Scotland from 40,000t to 60,000t in time for the 2008 harvest. This follows news two weeks before of a £12m investment by Simpsons of Berwick, U.K., to increase production at its Berwick-on-Tweed maltings by 40,000t. Scotland has lost 120,000t of malting capacity in recent years as a result of plant closures and distillers are concerned about future supplies of malt.

Heine of Peine, Germany, constructs a malthouse in the port of Hamburg, 75,000 tons; They will shut an old unit of 30,000 tons at Peine. Avangard, Moscow/Bremen, confirmed the completion of the half-finished malting tower at Koblenz, Germany, capacity 80,000 tons. Boortmalt will ...More Info

Since November 12, 2007, the export taxes for barley exported from Russia to the countries non-participants of the agreements about Customs union came into force, Agrimarket reported November 12.

The corresponding resolution was signed on October 10, 2007, No 660 "About the export taxes for wheat, meslin and barley from Russia to the countries non-participants of the agreements about Customs union" and was published on October 12, 2007.

According to this resolution the export tax for barley (code FEA CN of Russia 1003 00) was indicated 30%, but no less than 70 EUR/t.

The export tax will be valid till April 30, 2008 inclusive.

Russia’s barley crop amounted to 17.0 or 17.2 Mill. tons as per USDA and IGC, but only 16.4 Mill. tons as per private Russian estimates, according to analysts, November 2.

The export tax should exclude Russia from the world barley market until spring of next year. Barley exports in July/October had been 632.000 tons, imports in July/September 55.000.tons.

New crop (2008) prices are EUR 40,- to 50,- per ton lower than those of crop 2007, according to analysts, November 2.

Two-row spring barley: Danish and Swedish, October, FOB seaport EUR 270,- U.K., same position, 274,-, German , ex harvest, delivered maltings, EUR 300,-, French, July, FOB Creil (nominal) 285,-. French winter barley, same position, Esterel 245,-, Cervoise 235,-.

These prices are EUR 100,- per ton higher than a year ago, but they seem to be realistic today. We expect brewers and maltsters to start negotiations on barley and malt of crop 2008 soon.

Former monopoly barley exporter ABB Grain is facing stiff competition for the AU$700 million Australian market from a host of international marketers, The Advertiser reported November 13.

The competition has come as low world barley stocks have pushed prices to records this season with feed barley prices reaching AU$400 a tonne before slipping to about AU$300/t, still higher than ever before.

While farmers have mixed views on whether they are benefiting from deregulation, southern Eyre Peninsula growers are receiving prices equal to those offered at Port Adelaide for the first time.

But deregulation has led to precarious market positions with numerous farmers unable to fulfil contracts while others are watching prices go well beyond their contract prices.

Rural Directions marketing services manager Chris Heinjus said that a significant amount of barley marketing had been done by other companies this year.

"Grain prices in the past two weeks show that growers can gain up to AU$30 a tonne more on any day by shopping around," Mr Heinjus said yesterday.

Yesterday's cash prices show the highest cash price of AU$295 a tonne delivered to Port Adelaide was being offered by Elders and Glencore International (Brooks Grain).

It was followed by Centre State at AU$284/t, Cargill Australia Ltd AU$275/t and ...More Info