It comes as a surprise that sales for Coca-Cola HBC in Greece, which is where the company started out in 1969, should have been mildly positive in the first half of this year, aided by some clever marketing including smaller packaging.
By contrast, Russia, impacted by falling disposable income, was as expected weak, even if the company outperformed the soft drinks market generally. CCHBC, which moved to a London quote in 2013, bottles and sells Coke in 28 countries.
In so many different territories, its performance is always going to be variable, but the halfway figures comfortably outpaced City expectations, sending the shares ahead by 97p to £14.20. They have been a dull market throughout the summer, mainly because of concerns over Greece, which accounts