(Yicai Global) Feb. 24 -- Shares of Budweiser Brewing Company APAC jumped after Asia’s biggest beer company by sales said profit soared 85 percent last year thanks to strong demand for premium products and despite the ongoing impact of Covid-19 restrictions.

Budweiser APAC [HKG: 1876] closed up 4.8 percent at HKD23.95 (USD3.07) today, giving the Asia-Pacific arm of Anheuser-Busch InBev a market value of HKD317.2 billion (USD40.6 billion).

Net profit was USD950 million in the year ended Dec. 31, versus USD514 million a year earlier, buoyed by the company’s ‘premiumization’ strategy, Budweiser APAC said in a filing to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange today. Revenue rose 14.9 percent to USD6.8 billion.

“Our expansion strategy, supported by successful innovations and continuing advances in our digital transformation initiatives, further expedited the growth of our Premium and Super Premium portfolio and helped us build a great foundation for 2022 and beyond,” said Co-Chairman and Chief Executive Jan Craps.

Revenue per hectoliter rose 6.1 percent in 2021, driven by positive package and brand mix, with premium and above sales growing by double digits in all key markets. Volumes jumped 8.3 percent to 8.8 million hl, as the firm said it “consistently outperformed the industry, especially in China and South Korea.”

Revenue and normalized earnings before interest, taxes, and depreciation in China, Budweiser APAC’s largest market, soared 18 percent and 28.7 percent, respectively. Both figures were above pre-pandemic levels. The company’s share of the Chinese market also rose by 80 basis points.

There is still room for improvement based on the expectation that the number of middle-class households in China will likely quadruple by 2030 to twice the number in the US, Budweiser APAC noted, adding that ‘premiumization’ will continue to be the primary driver of the firm’s top-line growth and strong financial performance in the country.

Digitization is another key factor in accelerating Budweiser APAC’s business growth. Its business-to-business platform BEES had over 500,000 clients at the end of 2021 and its transactional functionality is used by about 10,000 small and mid-sized retailers in the two pilot cities. It is set to be available in 10 cities in the first half of this year, and 60 by December.

Editor: Futura Costaglione