Dive Brief:
- SABMiller reported a 3% rise in organic earnings for the first half of the fiscal year, well below the 6% increase expected by Wall Street.
- The brewer behind brands such as Coors, Peroni, Miller, and more put much of the blame on slow sales in China and Australia and on a strong U.S. dollar.
- Currency swings, which knocked some $71 million off Ebitda, are expected to continue to hurt earnings for the remainder of the year, SABMiller said.
Dive Insight:
SABMiller's currency challenges have been going on for quite some time. Swings in the dollar cut a full $400 million from Ebitda in the fiscal year that ended in March. At this point the brewer might be better off buying a few currency trading firms and boosting its hedging capability rather than trying to buy rival brewers.