(Bloomberg) -- Heineken NV, Anheuser-Busch InBev NV and other brewers finally have a glimmer of good news in the fall- out from the coronavirus pandemic, which forced the shutdown of restaurants, bars and pubs in large parts of the world.
The latest Nielsen data for Europe for the four weeks ended April 19 show solid growth trends, according to Goldman Sachs Group Inc., with growth in beer volume and value accelerating throughout the region with the exception of Germany, as customers shifted to drinking at home. The pickup was particularly strong in the U.K. and Spain, boosted by stockpiling ahead of the lockdown, Goldman analysts led by Olivier Nicolai wrote in a note Friday. The data show consumers also bought mainstream or premium beers, allaying concern that they would snap up cheaper beers given the difficult context, the analysts said.
Heineken’s outperformance in the U.K. continued with 51.4% volume growth, with the Heineken and Birra Moretti brands being the main growth drivers, the analysts wrote. AB InBev, meanwhile, continued to outperform in France, with strong growth for its Corona and Leffe beers.