PRAGUE, Czech Republic (AP) — The Czech state-owned brewery Budejovicky Budvar NP, which has been fighting a long legal battle with Anheuser-Busch over the Budweiser brand, said Monday it boosted its annual production by 8.7 percent and had record exports again.
Budvar produced 1.253 million hectoliters (33.1 million gallons) of beer in 2007, compared with 1.152 million hectoliters (30.4 million gallons) in the previous year, the company said in a statement.
Exports continued to grow to reach a record 587,000 hectoliters (15.5 million gallons), 5.8 percent up from 2006, also a record year, the brewer said.
Budvar exported its beer to 53 countries last year, entering new markets in South Korea, Brazil and Albania, it said.
Financial details of 2007 have not been released. In 2006, Budvar posted a net profit of 183.9 million koruna (euro7.04 million; US$10.37 million).
Budvar has fought with U.S.-based beer giant Anheuser-Busch Cos. Inc. in a number of countries over use of the famous Budweiser brand, to which both companies claim a historical right.
Last year, the Czech government began a process that could lead to Budvar's eventual sale but it was not clear when that might happen.
