Belgians buy the King of Beers
Belgian's InBev has bought US brewer Anheuser-Busch in a deal which heralds many more similar takeovers as consolidation in the brewing industry seems likely to gather pace.
"Credit crunch what credit crunch?" asked Dominic Walsh in the Times. InBev, The Belgian brewing giant, has agreed a $61bn takeover of Anheuser-Busch, for which it managed to raise $45bn of debt. The deal creates a "global juggernaut", said The WallStreet Journal a global top-five consumer products company with combined sales last year of $36bn. With this deal, "InBev has scored a coup", said John Foley on Breakingviews. Allied with AB, the firm will be less reliant on risky Latin American markets, and gets a "strong base in the world's fastest growing beer market" China. Furthermore, noted Walsh, InBev now controls Budweiser, the 'King of Beers', "an iconic brand" never properly exploited by AB.
More deals ahead
Further consolidation "seems certain", with SAB Miller expected to lead it. This latest deal will have had the world's top brewers "quaking in their boots".
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