By Emily Hawkins
Global drinks titans Diageo and AB InBev have reported overflowing sales after the easing of Covid lockdowns has driven punters back into bars.
Johnnie Walker maker Diageo posted net sales of £15.5bn, an increase of 21.4 per cent, which it accredited to the pub and bar sector recovering from the side effects of Covid 19 lockdowns.
It also benefited from drinkers’ opting for spirits and for premium brands and acknowledged “mid-single digit price growth driven by price increases across all regions.”
In Great Britain, net sales grew 20 per cent, as revellers flocked back to pubs and shoppers continued to buy drinks at supermarkets and shops.
Spirit sales were boosted 12 per cent, with a decline in gin offset by sales boosts for vodka, rum, Baileys and scotch.
The return of pubs saw Guinness sales elevated 52 per cent.
“We expect the operating environment to be challenging, with ongoing volatility related to Covid-19, significant cost inflation, a potential weakening of consumer spending power and global geopolitical and macroeconomic uncertainty,” Ivan Menezes, Diageo chief executive, added.
Elsewhere, the world’s largest brewer AB InBev posted EBITDA up 7.2 per cent for the second quarter, beating analyst expectations.
The Corona brewer put the boost down to the scrapping of lockdown restrictions in key markets and noted a double-digit percentage boost to profit in Latin American markets, including Brazil, Colombia, Mexico.
However, the brewer said volumes in North America and Europe were slightly lower, with European profits still elevated versus a year prior.
Many drinkers have been opting for pricer premium beers, despite the cost of living crunch, the brewer added.
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