Despite selling 2% less beer in 2d qtr, Brazil's Ambev managed to nearly triple earnings to $127 mil. How? Try 10% price hike last year plus strong demand during World Cup. Also gained 1 share point of Brazilian mkt, to 68.8. On other side of globe: brutal price wars and slowing happoshu (low-malt) mkt in Japan means brewers' profits gettin' slammed there. Top-3 brewers all dropped forecasts for '02: #1 Asahi lowered net profit forecast over 20%, and #2 Kirin dropped '02 earning forecast over 10% (so far in '02, 6-mo net profit down 27%). #3 Sapporo chopped annual earnings forecasts by 74%. Ouch.

Brent Willis is new Chief, Mktg, Sales and Distribution officer for Interbrew worldwide.   He’s 42 from US and used to work for K-Mart, Kraft and Coke (including chief mktg officer at K-Mart.)   This is new slot for Interbrew; Paul Cooke, once Labatt USA prexy and recently chief mktg officer (once a McKinsey consultant too), recently left the co.  

Former NBWA chairman and longtime leader of 1 of largest US distribs, Houston Dist Co, Joe Huggins died last week at just 64. Joe was a dynamo with tremendous force of personality and a longtime change agent in beer biz, very active in govt affairs at state and Federal level, but he was slowed in recent yrs by illness. His son Bo is current prexy of HDC.

Ain’t pretty.  Another tuff yr in nation’s biggest beer mkt, especially for big brewers.  AB off 59,000 bbls, 1% thru Jun in Calif even as it intro’d Bacardi Silver.  But Miller down 103,000 bbls, 6%, including 3 new malternative intros. Meanwhile, Coors off 38,000 bbls, 3% for 6 mos.

“Sales weakness in the US is continuing” and Coors “will substantially increase marketing  & promotional spending in 2003,” wrote UBS Warburg’s Caroline Levy.  She downgraded stock after talking to distribs who apparently gave her an earful:  “We sense a growing concern that Coors has little chance of truly re-energizing its business.”  Caroline now forecasts flat volume and just 1% rev per bbl increase in 2003.  “Many distributors particularly in the Southwest… commented that Coors does not have an effective marketing program to reach the expanding Hispanic-American population,” she added.    

Joint Committee of the States, which represents regulators from control states and open states, “unanimously voted to indicate its support for the direction” BATF is taking to "correctly" reclassify malternatives.  Aug 6 letter to BATF noted that “because of the high volume of alcohol-based flavors in the flavored malt beverages, some states will be forced to either change their statutes or change the current taxation and distribution policies and treat these products as spirits.”  Urged BATF to move “as quickly as possible.”  JCS also supports “mandatory alcohol content labeling” for all malt bevs.

AB suggesting 45-cent price hike to retailers (70-30 split) on Sep 30 on Bud and Bud Light in Fla.  That’s about a 3% jump.  Taking similar 45-cent increase on subpremiums, but amounts to 4% increase off lower base.  No draft for now. AB suggesting over $2.00 per case, 12% front-line increase on Michelob products (50-50).  However, increase not as big as it appears, because AB offering significant quantity discounts on 10 cases and 25 cases.  So not that much incremental Michelob family rev in Michelob’s biggest mkt.  More details in Beer Marketer’s INSIGHTS.

Miller had sought to terminate a home d (NY’s unique 4th tier) that sold some of its acquired brands last summer.  But distrib Garal  just won dismissal of a Miller claim against NY franchise law.   TRO that distrib got last Nov is still in effect too.  Miller had argued that amendments to franchise law invalid and don’t apply but state court judge disagreed. “Miller knew that its contractual rights were subject to alteration by state law,” he wrote.   Then too: “The Court rejects the claim that the amendment constitutes special interest legislation.”  Judge called amendments “rather modest remedial changes.”

Domestic taxpaid shipments started off 3d qtr strong; up 400,000 bbls, 2.6% in Jul, according to estimate by Matt Hein at Beer Inst.   That put domestic beer biz up 1.25 mil bbls, over 1% for 7 mos.  So far, domestic beer biz has healthier trend in 2002 than any yr in last 10,  except 1999.  Of course, most of that 2002 domestic growth comes from  malternatives. …….. Imports Slowed in 1^st Half  While domestic shipments doin’ better than usual, import growth tailin’ off a bit.   With a 3.6% drop in Jun, imports up about 570,000 bbls, 5% in 1^st half.  That’s skewed by Smirnoff Ice production shifted to US in 2002 (it went other way last yr), but still a slower import trend.  

Remember 1^st Maris lawsuit, Fed Court trial that largely revolved around whether AB’s ban of public ownership in equity agreement was antitrust violation.  Back in Sep 2000,  District Court jury upheld AB view that it’s not anti-competitive.  Maris appealed (and won its state lawsuit on different issues in interim).  US Appeals Court just ruled District Court did not err by granting "directed verdict" in favor of AB on question of whether it had mkt power.  Reason: relevant mkt for analysis is ownership of beer distribs: AB share in that mkt less than 3%.  Maris tried to argue that AB’s 48 share of beer mkt should be included.  But judges ruled: “Maris has not identified a valid economic reason why Anheuser Busch’s alleged market power in the beer market should create market power in the different market for the purchase and sale of equity ownership in beer distributorships.”  As for state trial, 1 yr later, “Marises haven’t collected a nickel,” said Maris atty Madison McCellan in early Aug.  Could be 6 mos or more before state case “works its way through the appellate courts” wrote Gainesville Sun.