Amsterdam-based, Heineken has said that it has reported earnings before interest and taxes of $1.58 billion or 1.27 billion euros during the first six months of the year. The figure was below 1.31 billion-euro expected in a Bloomberg survey of 10 analysts. The analysts were expecting a growth of 0.5 percent but the company reported a decline of 5.5 percent. The company says that its earnings will remain unchanged this year amid a slowdown in the European market.

Dutch company, Heineken, which launched an acquisition bud valued at S$5.1bn in July, has indicated that it might increase the bud value to acquire a majority stake in the company.

APB, which is based in Singapore, is the maker of popular Tiger brand of beer. Heineken already owns a stake of about 42 per cent in APB and is aiming to acquire full control of the company. Joint-venture partner Fraser & Neave now owns 39.7 per cent in the company.

The Heineken family, post the all-share acquisition of the Mexican brewer FEMSA Cerveza, will see some of its interest in the brewer melt away, but it will still continue to retain overall control.

In 2002, the family's Charlene de Carvalho-Heineken inherited her father's controlling stake in the firm, and has since worked with the brewer's top management to try and construct a complex deal to keep control in the company intact, and also expand into rapidly growing and lucrative markets of Mexico and Brazil.