The beer market in Vietnam declined by a mid-single-digit in the first quarter of this year, but Heineken’s net revenue (per before exceptional items and amortization-beia formula) was up in the mid-teens, the Dutch brewer said Wednesday.
In its Q1/2024 review, Heineken said the Vietnamese beer market continued to be impacted by a “soft consumer environment” and “stricter enforcement of zero tolerance whilst driving regulations.”
Heineken attributed its strong performance to “volume growth in the low-teens, cycling the destocking effect from last year.” Another factor is the momentum of Heineken Silver, a premium brand of the brewer, it added.
Reviewing the global performance, Heineken said the firm's net revenue (beia) was €6.8 billion ($7.3 billion), up 9.4% organically. Its beer volume increased 4.7% organically with growth in all regions.
In particular, in Asia-Pacific region, the performance benefitted from a soft comparable base last year due to one-off effects in Vietnam and Nigeria, it highlighted.
For its premium brands, the volume growth was 12.9%. Heineken 0.0 grew in the high-teens, led by Brazil, Vietnam, and China. Heineken Silver grew by more than 50%, led by Vietnam and China.
Vietnam's beer output in Q1 was 1.02 billion liters, down 4.1% year-on-year, according to the General Statistics Office.
Heineken's latest investment in Vietnam took shape in November 2022 with the signing of a memorandum of understanding to invest an additional $142 million in its brewery in Ba Ria-Vung Tau province, increasing its brewery’s capacity from 11 million hectoliters (hl) to 16 million.
In December 2022, Heineken CEO Dolf van den Brink told Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh that the company would pour a further $500 million into Vietnam in the coming years.