Mass-produced beer is a slow-growth industry and major brewers have merged in an effort to cut costs and grab market share. But consolidation may be little more than a short-term fix. The best known deal: InBev snapped up Anheuser-Busch once an American icon in 2008 for about $52 billion to create Anheuser-Busch InBev (BUD) the world’s largest brewer with operations in about 30 countries around the world.InBev’s third-quarter profit increased 11.9% to $1.55 billion by reducing expenses including jobs and advertising expenses. But revenue dropped 10% to $9.76 billion as beer volume fell 3.1%.Bloomberg reports that InBev may attempt ...

Brewers Tapping Into Higher Prices

Minyan Morning Memo One to watch: Walt Disney (DIS) is due to report fiscal third-quarter earnings at the close. Shares of the entertainment juggernaut and world’s biggest media entity have been a strong performer in ‘09 and the company has a habit of posting results that beat the Street. Its Pixar movie division is looking Up -- the story of Ed Asner as an animated septuagenarian is a surprisingly lucrative hit with America’s youth and a seemingly self replenishing supply of Hannah Montanas and Jonas Brothers are a continuing boon to its cable channel. Theme-park attendance has held surprisingly steady ...

Sam's Club -- a subsidiary of Wal-Mart (WMT) -- recently came under fire for a rather unusual promotional campaign for its pharmacy: A Maryland branch handed out prescription bottles filled with candy to children -- presumably to introduce the world of pharmaceutical drugs to minors. The promotion was quickly killed and Sam's Club issued an apology calling it an isolated incident.However this is scarcely the first time Wal-Mart has faced a public outcry. Minyanville asks: What other Wal-Mart promotions have courted controversy? Which Wal-Mart Promotions Have Courted Controversy?   Free candy with every purchase of sedatives and bungee cords ...

New Balance is highlighting that its shoes are made in America. Does going local make good business sense?