Coca-Cola, a leading player in the beverage industry, announced on Tuesday that its business in India experienced strong growth throughout 2023. Additionally, the company disclosed plans to boost investments aimed at expanding capacity to meet the demands of the Indian market.
The beverage giant said that growth in developing and emerging markets was led by India and Brazil for the December quarter and for the full year of 2023.
Speaking at the investor call, the company’s management said, “A significant portion of our expected capital investment increase is to build capacity for Fairlife and for our India business, both of which experienced robust growth in 2023.”
In its earnings release, the company noted that, “Consolidated unit volume grew 2 per cent for the quarter. Developing and emerging markets grew 4 per cent , driven by growth in Brazil and India. For the full year, unit case volume grew 2 per cent. Developing and emerging markets grew 2 per cent, driven by growth in India and Brazil.”
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Regarding performance in the Asia-Pacific region, the company noted a 2% increase in unit case volume for the December quarter, driven primarily by growth in India and China.
The company also noted an increase in its market share within the beverage segment, particularly in regions like India, throughout the year 2023.
In January, Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages, the bottling arm of the company, transferred its bottling operations in Rajasthan, Bihar, the North-East, and certain areas of West Bengal to its established independent bottlers.
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India ranks as the fifth largest market globally for the beverage giant. Currently, Coca-Cola operates with 11 bottling partners in India, which includes the company-owned HCCB.