Dive Brief:
- The crisis in Ukraine and Russia's ban on European imports is expected to cause serious problems for Carlsberg and Heineken, the rival brewers said in their earnings statements.
- Carlsberg, which generates a third of its sales by volume from Russia, lowered its forecasts for both revenue and earnings for the rest of the year.
- Heineken, which is not as dependent upon sales to the former Soviet Union, said it expects sales growth in the remainder of the year to slow, but for full-year results to remain better than 2013.
Dive Insight:
Amid all the warnings about trouble ahead, it's easy to look past the good news in the brewers' earnings.
Carlsberg and Heineken both beat profit estimates. Heineken in particular had a great quarter: Every unit topped forecasts and the company's massive cost-cutting initiative remains on track.