Carlsberg subsidiary increases market share in Russia despite decline on beer market

2010-08-19

In Q2 2010 Baltika, a Russian brewery belonging to the Carlsberg group, was able to grow its share of the Russian beer market in volume terms from 39.1% in Q1 2010 to 40.1% in Q2 2010. The increase was achieved despite the overall decline in the beer market in the country. In H1 2010, for example, the market contracted by 9% in volume terms. In Carlsberg’s opinion, the decline was due primarily to the three-fold increase in excise duty on beer in Russia, which has been effective since 1 January 2010. Anton Artemiev, the company’s CEO, has admitted that, although beer remains Baltika’s core business, the company is exploring new development routes in the face of increasing regulatory pressure.
The rising market share in terms of volume was achieved despite a decrease in sales revenues generated by Baltika. The company reported a 11% year-on-year drop in sales in H1 2010 and a decrease in net profit of 21.3% to RUB 11.1bn ($364.6m). Baltika attributes the increase in its market share to launches of new brands in Q2 including: Baltika Razlivnoye, Nevskoye Imperskoye, Zhatetsky Gus Temny and Baltika Kulier.