Volume on the rise, income drops
The soda sales in the developed regions, like Europe and the United States, have been on the slide for quite a while as people there are switching to healthier alternatives. Turnover dropped 4 % to 10.58 billion dollars (7.64 billion euro), but analysts had merely expected 10.55 billion dollars (7.62 billion euro). Net profit dropped 8% to 1.62 billion dollars (1.17 billion euro).
The worldwide volume grew 2 %, while China managed a 12 % increase with a marketing campaign around Chinese New Year as an additional boost. The Asia Pacific region, including China, has become Coca-Cola’s second largest income region, with 13 % last year.
Emerging markets perform well
The other emerging markets also performed above average with 6 % increases in volume in Russia and India, while Brazil grew 4 %. The North American market remained stable, even though the 2013 soda sales were at their lowest level since 1995, while Europe dropped 4 %.
Coca-Cola is still careful with its next quarter’s and the full year’s outlook, as lousy exchange rates and mainly the devalued Venezuelan bolivar might have its effect on the results. To get sales back up, Coca-Cola has planned one of the largest marketing campaigns it has ever devised, with a large focus on the World Championship football in Brazil.
