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        <title><![CDATA[Coca-Cola earnings: Sales plunge 28% amid coronavirus lockdown]]></title>
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            <media:title type="html">Coca-Cola earnings: Sales plunge 28% amid coronavirus lockdown</media:title>
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        <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Coca-Cola’s global sales plummeted 28 percent in the second quarter as coronavirus lockdowns&nbsp;<strong>continued to crimp consumption</strong>, the company said Tuesday.</p><p>The soft drink giant said pressure on &#8220;away-from-home channels&#8221; such as restaurants, bars and movie theaters drove the decline.&nbsp;Officials around the world have shut down such venues — which account for roughly half of Coke&#8217;s revenues — to control the COVID-19 pandemic.</p><p>The $7.2 billion in net sales that Coke raked in from April to June was roughly in line with Wall Street’s expectations despite falling from about $10 billion a year ago, according to Bloomberg data. The Atlanta-based conglomerate expects sales to improve through the rest of the year as the lockdowns ease — though the pandemic makes that far from certain.</p><p>“We believe the second quarter will prove to be the most challenging of the year; however, we still have work to do as we drive our pursuit of ‘Beverages for Life’ and meet evolving consumer needs,” Coke Chairman and CEO James Quincey said in a statement.</p><p>The pandemic has also hammered Coke’s profits, with adjusted earnings per share plunging 33 percent year-over-year to 42 cents. But that was better than Wall Street’s dim expectations for 40 cents a share, according to Bloomberg data.</p><p>The earnings beat helped lift Coke’s stock price as much as 4 percent to $47.99 in early trading Tuesday.</p><p>Coke indicated that &#8220;sustained, elevated sales&#8221; of its products for at-home consumption have helped it recover since the pandemic forced consumers to hunker down at home this spring.</p><p>The number of cases of drinks sold by Coke and its bottling partners was down about 10 percent in June, a marked improvement from April&#8217;s roughly 25 percent decline, the company said.</p><p>But sales volume was still off 16 percent for the quarter &#8220;as all operating groups experienced coronavirus-related pressure,&#8221; Coke said. That included a 12 percent drop in the sparkling soft drinks segment, with Coke&#8217;s eponymous cola falling 7 percent, the company said.</p>]]></content:encoded>
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