Chile-based drinks group Compañía Cervecerías Unidas has acquired control of a PepsiCo licence in a second country.
CCU, which distributes PepsiCo products in Chile, has struck a deal for rights in Paraguay.
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The company has struck a deal with Paraguay conglomerate Vierci Group, which holds the PepsiCo beverages licence and distributes snacks for the US giant in the country.
The transaction includes two companies owned by CCU – Bebidas del Paraguay and Distribuidora del Paraguay – and AV, which is owned by Vierci Group.
Under the terms of the deal, CCU will control 51% of the shares of the three entities. The remaining 49% of the companies will be held by Vierci Group.
The transaction was confirmed alongside the publication of CCU’s third-quarter financial results.
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By GlobalDataNet sales fell 3% to 665.82bn pesos, or by 6.9% on an organic basis.
EBIT dropped 34.2% to 33.63bn. Net income, however, more than trebled year on year to 29.55bn.
CCU said its sales volumes grew 5.7% to 7.99bn hectolitres, although that represented a 5.5% decline organically. The company pointed to weaker demand in Argentina.
In Chile, CCU said its volumes and EBITDA grew. The Altaïr wine group said its domestic market also helped its wine business increase volumes and revenue year on year.
Chile and wine represent two of CCU’s three “operating segments”. Its third is its “international business”, which reported lower organic volumes and sales in the third quarter amid the pressure on its business in Argentina.
