India shines in Coca-Cola’s global sales in the September quarter

Boosted by significant growth in sales of ready-to-drink beverages in India, global fizzy drinks giant The Coca-Cola Company reported an expansion in its overall business during the July-September quarter. The company which operates in over 190 countries managed to grow its global volume sales by two per cent in the period. This was its best growth performance since the pandemic began in early 2020.

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James Quincey, Chief Executive Officer of the company, today said in an investors call that volume sales in the Indian market grew by double digits during the quarter. “In India, we delivered double-digit volume and top-line growth which resulted in value share gains over the past three years. We are winning in the market by generating 2.6 billion transactions at affordable price points and driving availability across rural regions,” he said.

As per the company, Coke’s “unit case volume grew 2 per cent for the quarter. Developed markets grew 2 per cent driven by growth in Mexico and Japan. Developing and emerging markets also grew 2 per cent driven by growth in India and the Philippines”. For its Bottling Investment Group (BIG) or Coke’s in-house bottling company, growth in India also drove its global growth. In the Asia-Pacific region, Coke gained value share in total non-alcoholic ready-to-drink beverages, led by share gains in India, the Philippines, South Korea, and Japan.

Overall, Coca-Cola’s net revenue surged 8 per cent year-on-year to touch US$ 12 billion while its operating income grew 6 per cent over the same period last year.

Over the past few years, Coke has undertaken major re-franchising exercises across multiple markets including India. Currently, the Indian market remains only a few which remains to be re-franchised completely as BIG continues to bottle Coke products here.

According to John Murphy, Chief Financial Officer of The Coca-Cola Company, the management plans to remain “disciplined in its approach, making sure it best positions its systems to deliver sustainable long-term growth”.