The world’s largest brewer AB InBev, which owns brands including Budweiser, Stella Artois and Corona, has posted a first-quarter growth in profits of almost 9%,driven by price increases and volume recovery.
The group saw a 6% increase in combined sales of its global brands, Budweiser, Stella Artois and Corona, outside their respective home markets.
Underlying profit in the first three months of 2022 was up 9% by £0.96 billion ($1.2 billion), compared to £0.88 billion ($1.1 billion) a year ago.
Total revenues were up 11.1% to £10.5 billion ($13.2 billion), up from £9.79 billion ($12.3 billion) last year.
Sales volumes also grew, increasing by 2.8%, with beer volumes up by 2.2% and non-beer volumes up by 6%.
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“Relentless execution of our strategy and accelerated digital transformation drove continued momentum in the first quarter, delivering an 11.1% increase in the top-line through a combination of both volume and revenue per hl growth,” said chief executive Michel Doukeris.
“Our teams continued to meet the moment in this dynamic operating environment to deliver 7.4% EBITDA growth.”
Looking forward, the group expects EBITDA to grow in line with its medium-term outlook of between 4-8% and revenue to grow ahead of EBITDA from a combination of volume and price.
The company warned that its outlook for 2022 reflects its current assessment of the scale and magnitude of the Covid-19 pandemic, which is subject to change as it continues to monitor ongoing developments.
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