Carlsberg Weighed Down by Weak Consumer Spending

Carlsberg weighed down by weak consumer spending

By Jacob Gronholt-Pedersen

COPENHAGEN (Reuters) -Carlsberg on Thursday reported a decline in underlying sales and volumes for the third quarter from a year earlier, citing a challenging consumer environment, and said it was taking steps to cut costs.

The Danish brewer, the world's third-largest after Anheuser-Busch InBev and Heineken, posted a 1.4% drop in organic sales - excluding acquisitions - and a 3% decline in organic volumes. 

Total sales in the third quarter rose 18% to 24.14 billion Danish crowns ($3.77 billion), slightly below analysts' average forecast of 24.21 billion crowns.

The sales growth was attributed to the acquisition of British soft drinks maker Britvic in January. 

However, reduced consumer spending, U.S. tariffs, and geopolitical uncertainty have weighed on demand for premium and low-alcohol beer, key areas of focus for large brewers.

"We achieved solid underlying volume and revenue growth in Western Europe and saw sequential improvement in Asia, supported by strong performance of our premium portfolio in most markets," CEO Jacob Aarup-Andersen said in a statement.

Carlsberg maintained its forecast for organic operating profit growth of 3-5% for the full year, exceeding last year's 2.4% but short of its 4-6% target. 

Aarup-Andersen, who became CEO in 2023, noted that consumer sentiment remained subdued across markets and said the company had taken steps to adjust its cost base since early summer.

(Reporting by Jacob Gronholt-Pedersen. Editing by Louise Rasmussen and Mark Potter)