Coca-Cola diplomacy

The Economist has the Big Mac index for measuring purchasing power, and French journalist William Reymond has the Coca- Cola index. The author of an exposé on the American company ("Coca-Cola, l'enqu?te interdite") said that Coca-Cola is the perfect thermometer for measuring the position of the U.S. in the world. When things are going well for the U.S. government, he said, they're going well for Coke too. So, how does the index stack up in the CR? Coke is rather light on figures but admits that the CR is one of the cheapest markets in Europe. Coca-Cola itself saw its revenue fall by 6.5% in 2004 on paper-thin margins, but its bottling company reported 10.7% growth in sales and nearly double the profits. Kofola, its chief domestic rival, has captured 24% of the cola market and 12% of the overall non-alcoholic market, while dragging down prices. Put in a political context, Coca-Cola diplomacy is working, but there are big patches of resistance. [Czech Republic soft drinks beverages]