Heineken said it hopes to keep its beer prices steady and will take some pain from inflationary pressures.
The brewing company warned input costs in Europe could increase in the high teens this year, citing significantly higher energy costs as the reason.
“We will continue the discipline to price responsibly as per local market conditions, aiming to cover ‘most’ of the absolute impact of inflation in our cost base,” Heineken said in its latest trading update.
This decision is in contrast to rival Carlsberg’s potential plans to increase its beer prices, which it hinted at with its full year results.
Heineken is drunk by 26% of punters in the UK, research from Statista found.
The Dutch business’s net revenue in the UK grew in the high teens in 2022, whilst its Italian beer Moretti became the largest premium brand in the market by value, the results added.
The Amstel and Sol owner also acquired the remaining shares of UK brewery Beavertown in September, taking advantage of the shrinking UK sector.
Globally, the company forecast operating profits to grow at a mid-high single-digit rate in 2023.
However, in Europe volumes are predicted to decline this year.
Worldwide profit and sales growth was ahead of consensus, analysts at Barclays said, with the expected European sales decline also in line with the bank’s estimates.
Heineken’s share price is €93, up 2% today.