Beer market leader sees 13% sales decline over the past year

Ursus Breweries, producer of the Ursus and Timisoreana brands and leader of the Romanian beer market, with over 325 million euros in turnover in 2008, ended the April 2009 - March 2010 financial year with a 13% sales decline, to around 5.1 million hectolitres - according to ZF estimates. Therefore, after the booming years, where the beer producer announced over 20% sales rises at the end of each year, and was one of the main growth drivers of the parent company in Europe, Ursus Breweries became the SABMiller subsidiary with the biggest sales decline in the region in the 2009-2010 financial year.

"These results come in the context where the market fell by 18% between April 2009 and March 2010, the biggest decline on the European market. The 13% organic volume decline recorded by Ursus Breweries during this period is smaller than the market average," said Andrei Haret, interim president of Ursus Breweries, adding that the decline had to do with the consumption decline. Heineken Romania, the main rival of Ursus Breweries, recorded a similar volume decline, by around 13%, to around five million hectolitres.