Czech Republic: Budvar reports 5.5% increase in production and record exports in 2006

Brewery Budejovicky Budvar NP, which has been fighting a long legal battle with Anheuser-Busch over the Budweiser brand, said Thursday its annual production rose 5.5 percent and it saw record exports, The Associated Press reported April 26.

Budvar produced 1.15 million hectoliters of beer in 2006, compared with 1.09 million hectoliters in 2005, spokesman Petr Samec said.

Exports rose 8 percent, the company said, with a record 555,000 hectoliters exported to 50 countries worldwide last year. Germany and Britain were among the company's most important markets, it said.

Czech state-owned Budvar said in a statement that its annual profit before taxes reached 267.2 million koruna (€9.5 million; US$12.9 million). That compares with 232.4 million koruna (€8.3 million; US$11.3 million) in 2005.

Samec said revenues came to about 2 billion koruna (€71 million; US$97 million). The company did not give net profit figures.

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