Heineken CEO: Price Increases To Be More Modest Going Forward

AMSTERDAM (Dow Jones)--Dutch brewer Heineken NV's price increases will be more modest in the coming period, Chief Executive Jean-Francois van Boxmeer said Wednesday. "Opportunities for pricing are much more subdued," Van Boxmeer said at a conference call, adding that price increases "will be much more modest going forward." Van Boxmeer said that Heineken has already substantially increased prices in the past years, partly due to higher input costs for goods like glass and aluminium. Earlier Wednesday, Heineken beat forecasts with a 20% jump in first-half net profit, helped by a one-off financial gain, while cost-savings and price increases partly offset lower volumes.