Anheuser-Busch InBev wins dispute with Modelo

NEW YORK

Anheuser-Busch InBev SA said Monday it has a won an arbitration dispute with Grupo Modelo, and investors said the saga's closure could set the stage for more deals among the world's top brewers.

Grupo Modelo sued Anheuser-Busch in October 2008 over its sale to InBev. Anheuser-Busch owns a 50 percent stake in Grupo Modelo.

Mexico's largest brewer filed the suit just before Anheuser-Busch shareholders approved the company's $52 billion sale to Belgium-based InBev, forming the world's largest brewer. The brewer of Corona said the sale to InBev violated its investment agreement because it should have had consent rights over the deal.

ABInBev said in a news release Monday that an arbitration panel ruled the combination did not violate the investment agreement. The panel awarded no damages, the company said, although reports say Grupo Modelo was asking for $2.5 billion.

Several Barclays Capital analysts said investors had been waiting for this decision and the companies may have been waiting, too, before undertaking any more deals.

"This means that some in the market could still be expecting a positive development from a (mergers and acquisitions) perspective," they said.

A message left for Grupo Modelo in Mexico was not immediately returned.

Beer producers have been combining to help save on costs as they expand around the world and into emerging markets.