BREWING giant Heineken grew net profit to €586 million (£496m) for the first half of 2016, with organic revenue up 4.7 per cent to more than €10 billion.
Sales grew across all regions, with Asia Pacific, at 11 per cent, showing the fastest growth. Its largest market remained Europe, which grew by 2.4 per cent to €4.9bn. Operating profit in Europe before exceptional items and amortisation was up 15.7 per cent to €581m.
Volume growth in Europe was 2.3 per cent, driven by Euro 2016.
Chief executive Jean-François van Boxmeer said: “Whilst Africa, the Middle East and Eastern Europe continued to be challenging, performance was strong in some key developing markets such as Vietnam and Mexico.
“Europe also contributed to our results with positive momentum and a clear focus on operational excellence.”
In the UK, beer volume grew low single digit driven by strong off-premise performance. Premium volume increased strongly in both cider and beer, led by Heineken. The company said pricing remained challenging in the UK.
Heineken said its pubs business continued to perform well, but provided no further information. In Scotland, Heineken operates 109 pubs in addition to its brewing output. Operated through the Star Pubs & Bars banner, the company is investing £2m in its Scottish sites in 2016, adding to the £5m invested since 2013.
Heineken announced an interim dividend of €0.52 per share of €1.60 nominal value, to be paid on August 11.
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