Coca-Cola May Boost Investment in China
by
Nov 1st 2010 6:29AM
Updated Nov 1st 2010 6:31AM
Coca-Cola Company (KO) may increase its spending in China, according to CEO Muhtar Kent.
Coke, the world's largest beverage company, will likely spend "a little more" than the $2 billion it had planned for China from 2009 to 2011, Kent told Bloomberg News.
"We're ahead of our projections in investments," Kent said.
China's soft-drink market grew 11% in 2009, according to Euromonitor International. Sprite, a Coca-Cola drink, is the country's top-selling non-alcoholic beverage.
Coke currently has 41 bottling plants in China. The Atlanta-based company has accelerated investment in bottling, its distribution network and a $90 million research and development center in Shanghai, Kent said.
"There is a lot of wealth growth in western and central China, so there is a lot of room to grow as Coca-Cola's presence there is relatively small," said Ben Cavender, an analyst at China Market Research Group.
Coke, the world's largest beverage company, will likely spend "a little more" than the $2 billion it had planned for China from 2009 to 2011, Kent told Bloomberg News.
"We're ahead of our projections in investments," Kent said.
Coke currently has 41 bottling plants in China. The Atlanta-based company has accelerated investment in bottling, its distribution network and a $90 million research and development center in Shanghai, Kent said.
"There is a lot of wealth growth in western and central China, so there is a lot of room to grow as Coca-Cola's presence there is relatively small," said Ben Cavender, an analyst at China Market Research Group.
