Danish brewer Carlsberg said October 04 it was working to enter India to keep step with competitors vying for a share of the fast-growing market, Reuters communicated October 04.

"We are meeting with authorities and potential partners ... because it's an interesting market for Carlsberg," the brewer's spokesman Jens Peter Skaarup said.

Skaarup said no decisions had yet been made but added that the Danish brewer was considering if it would enter the market alone or as part of a joint venture. "We are very thorough before we enter a new market and need to be sure we have the right setup," he said.

On Wednesday, the Economic Times reported that U.S.-based Anheuser Busch will take a 50 percent stake in Crown Breweries, a new venture in Hyderabad, investing 1 billion Indian rupees ($21.8 million).

British brewer Scottish & Newcastle has pledged that its Russian business, BBH, will overtake Europe's biggest brewing company, Heineken, in the next five years, The Hamilton Spectator posted October 02.

Little known by drinkers outside the former Soviet Union, BBH is preparing to launch a major assault on the U.K. market.

BBH's Baltika beers are among the most popular in Russia, but just one, Baltika 3, is sold in Britain. It is available only as an imported brand.

BBH's chairman, John Nicolson, confirmed the group was looking to bolster its position in Britain.

"Driving a Russian brand, with all the imagery we can build round it, it should be very powerful," he said. "We're now looking at turning it from a seeding opportunity to a development opportunity. Russia is bigger on the world stage again. It's the right time to drive this brand."

Scottish & Newcastle is having to hold discussions with BBH about brewing Baltika in Britain because it does not own the business outright. BBH is a joint venture between Scottish & Newcastle and Carlsberg, the Danish brewer. BBH has been a massive success for both companies. Sales soared as Russians turned from vodka.

Shares of Boston Beer Co. fell October 02 after a Prudential Equity Group analyst said there was not enough upside to retain the brewer of Sam Adams brews' current rating and downgraded the stock, The Boston Globe’s Business Ticker posted October 02.

Analyst Cheryl Gedvila had some positive words for the brewer.

"We continue to believe that Boston Beer is in the sweet spot of the beer industry as consumers migrate from mainstream beer into the higher-end craft and import categories, also known as 'better beer,'" Gedvila wrote.

Gedvila said that all such activity by brewers including Anheuser-Busch, SABMiller, Molson Coors, and Heineken is spurring the migration and that Boston Beer is in a good place to capitalize on the trend.

However, she noted that Boston Beer shares are up 31.4 percent from the beginning of the year, so she downgraded the company to "Neutral Weight" from "Overweight" based on valuation.

In July – September EU maltsters booked export licences for 479,000 t, only 8,000 tons less than last year, experts released October 02. It is an open question, whether the EU malting industry can repeat last year's exports of 2.2 Mill. t. At present many maltsters do not offer malt at all or only limited quantities to international and domestic customers, as they cannot find the barley cover.

On the other hand world beer sales in 2006 are exceptionally good, new malt capacities in Argentina and Australia do not fully compensate the larger malt demand, therefore Europeans have a great chance to maintain their export volume.

Australian and Canadian maltsters have regained market shares, but are now almost sold out. Price levels of EU malt are EUR 330.-/340.- ex works for spring barley malt, (in exceptional places offers are EUR 400.-). Corresponding FOB levels are EUR 350.-/360.-. Esterel malt is quoted at EUR 330.- FOB, in bulk.

The EU has a deficit of 1 million tons of malting barley of traditional quality specifications. The markets have reacted by sky-high prices, withholding tactics by farmers, and a frantic search for solutions of the supply crisis, experts pointed out October 02.

Market prices, often only nominal, are (EUR/t):

French barley, basis July
6RW Esterel 150.- (FOB Creil), 160.- (FOB Moselle), 167.- (FOB Rouen)
2RS Scarlett 170.- (FOB Creil), 180.- (FOB Moselle), 189.- (FOB Rouen)

Danish barley, October, FOB seaport
2RS Prestige 180.-
2RS, faq, any variety 155.-

UK barley, December, FOB seaport
2RS Optic/Cocktail 185.- tr

German 2RS barley, Oct-Dec, franco maltings South Germany 190/200.- depending on location.

Slovak 2rS barley, Oct, franco Czech maltings 165.-.