Regional Review The Americas Performance review by country While volume in Costa Rica remained stable, the result was lower, mainly due to losses on soft-drink sales and low prices. A reorganisation was implemented at the end of 2003 to improve effectiveness and reduce costs. With separate business units for beer, soft drinks and distribution, Cerveceria Costa Rica is seeking to increase the effectiveness of its marketing and sales function. Heineken brand sales were lower. Sales in Panama were slightly lower. The focus in 2003 was on upgrading the entire portfolio, including investment in theSoberana and Panama brands. Intense competition kept prices in Panama low. Heineken brand imports were up 20%. Caribbean In a slightly smaller beer market, our sales increased slightly to 1.4 million hectolitres, of which Heineken beer accounted for approximately 70%. Despite good perform ance in most markets, the result in euros was lower. This was largely due to the weakness of the dollar, to which the local currencies are tied, but other factors were the growing competitive pressures and our increased investment in marketing to counter them. Operations Heineken has a total of five breweries in the region, in the Bahamas, St. Lucia, Surinam, Curasao and Martinique, two of which brew Heineken beer as well as local brands. The brewery in Curapao produces Amstel. Heineken beer is available in all 33 markets which constitute this region, in which distribution is organised by various routes in conjunction with several partners. The highest sales in the Caribbean were on Puerto Rico and in the Bahamas. The well developed tourist sector, the growing population and the relative political and economic stability make the Caribbean an attractive region. Market conditions Tourist numbers in the region remained low in the first half of 2003, which placed a heavy strain on purchasing power in many countries. Promising signs of recovery became apparent in the second half, and beer consumption was only slightly down by the end of the year. While imports of beers from Europe were lower in 2003, mainly due to the strength of the euro, movements in the exchange rates for other currencies in the region also resulted in heightened competition from low-priced South American beers. Results in the markets into which we import were depressed by the weakness of the dollar, to which the currencies of some of our largest markets are linked. Although our sales in local currency developed satisfactorily, this did not translate into our result in euros. The strong euro also increased the cost of raw materials and packaging, most of which our breweries import from the euro zone. Performance review by country Heineken and our other brands were supported by sponsorship of many local music events, and on St. Maarten we sponsored the St. Maarten Regatta. Substantial investments were made in 2003 in training to improve the commer cial skills both of the employees of our companies and those of our affiliated distributors. The Commonwealth Brewery on the Bahamas reported stable sales, but the result was lower due to distribution problems. Antilliaanse Brouwerij on Curagao had a difficult year, despite good performance by the Heineken brand, with the local market contracting and imports from South America rising. Surinaamse Brouwerij in Surinam reported stable sales and an improved result, in spite of the continued weakness of the local currency and the resultant inflation. Brasserie Lorraine on Martinique had a disappointing year, with lower sales volume and a slightly lower result. The beer market on Puerto Rico contracted by almost 10%, reflecting the higher import duties introduced in 2002, but sales only declined slightly. The Heineken brand performed quite well. Sales of imported beers were higher on Trinidad, Aruba, Cuba and the Cayman Islands and in French Guyana, but lower on Guadeloupe and Haiti. report of the executive board 39

Jaarverslagen en Personeelsbladen Heineken

Jaarverslagen | 2003 | | pagina 45