STRUCTURAL CHANGES  LOOKING AHEAD THANK YOU During the year, we took several steps in Asia  to further strengthen the Carlsberg Group’s  growth profile.  In China, we initiated the construction of a new  brewery in the Yunnan province in October.  The brewery is expected to be operational in  2015. During the year, we increased our share- holdings in the Qinghai and Lanzhou joint  ventures to 50%. In December, we finalised  the partial takeover offer for the shares in  Chongqing Brewery Company and now own  60% of the company. Also in December, we  announced the purchase of 100% of Chong- qing Beer Group Assets Management, further  expanding our footprint in China. The approvals  for that transaction are still pending. In August, we started the construction of the  first international brewery in Myanmar. The  brewery is expected to be operational in the  second half of 2014.  Finally, in Laos we increased our shareholding  in Lao Brewery by 10% to 61% and in Tibet,  we increased our shareholding in Lhasa  Brewery to 50%. In 2014 and beyond, we will continue to in- vest in growth and efficiency opportunities,  and build on the strengths of the Carlsberg  Group to ensure that we capture both the  short- and longer-term opportunities that  are present in our markets. To do so, we will  further develop and invest in our Asian busi- ness to ensure that we continuously position  it to capture the growth opportunities in the  region. In Western Europe, we will change  our business model and organisation, and  drive the ongoing efficiency improvements  while maintaining a focused commercial  agenda that will further strengthen our  business and the region’s profitability. And  in Russia, we will utilise the strength of our  Russian brand portfolio, route-to-market, innovation capabilities and execution skills  to further strengthen our market position  and improve profitability. We will continue our tight cost agenda across  all markets and functions to ensure that the  Group delivers earnings growth. In 2014, the  focus on strong execution, both internally  and externally, will be even more important  as we assume significant headwind from  currencies. I would like to extend my appreciation to  the Group’s employees around the world for  their hard work and burning passion for our  company. Our employees are instrumental in  the Group achieving its goals and ambitions.  I would also like to thank our shareholders  for their support, and our customers, partners  and suppliers for their cooperation. Jørgen Buhl Rasmussen Management review STATEMENT FROM THE CEO 11 Carlsberg Group Annual Report 2013 The Ukrainian market declined by an estimated 7-8% in 2013. We launched a number of innovations  such as line extensions of the Baltika and Lvivske brands and kept our market share flat.