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SABMiller beer volumes fall
Brewer SABMiller reported a decline in first-quarter beer volumes yesterday despite a World Cup boost, after floods, national mourning and a tax hike hit drinking in key markets. The brewer of Miller Lite, Peroni and Pilsner Urquell said that underlying beer and soft drink volumes were one per cent down year-on-year. Analysts were on balance expecting fractionally lower lager volumes. However, chief executive Graham Mackay said in a trading statement for its April-June quarter that lager volumes improved through the quarter, showing growth in June. Barclays analyst Alex Olroyd said: “Volumes recovered in June and that is probably the reason why the shares are up a bit”