Heineken 1H earnings fall, warns of weak markets

AMSTERDAM: Heineken NV, Europe's largest seller of beer, says first half earnings were down from the same period a year ago, when it booked a one-time gain, and it expects flat full year earnings.

Net profit in the first half of 2011 was 605 million ($872 million), down from 700 million in the same period a year ago, when Heineken booked a gain of 157 million on the sale of its Indonesian subsidiary.