Dive Brief:

• Carlsberg will pay $257 million to take full ownership of China's Chongqing Brewery.
• The deal comes just weeks after Carlsberg, the fourth-largest brewer on earth, paid $476 million to double its stake from 30 percent to 60 percent.
• The deal gives Copenhagen-based Carlsberg full control of eight breweries in China's Jiangsu, Anhui and Zhejiang provinces.

Dive Insight:

Carlsberg's interest in Chongqing is well-known. The Danish brewer has had a stake in Chongqing since 2007. And we were not surprised at all earlier this month when Carlsberg doubled its stake and took control. But we are surprised to learn that after just a few days, Carlsberg has nearly doubled its stake again. We have no idea what that's about. Did Chongqing reject an earlier offer for 100 percent? Did Carlsberg learn quickly that having a minority partner was too much trouble? Did Carlsberg try to spend that $257 million elsewhere in Asia first, only to be rejected. We'll let you know when and if we find out.