Coca-Cola, the world’s largest beverage company, said today that fourth-quarter profit fell 8.4 per cent and announced a new cost-cutting program to boost earnings.

Net income dropped to $1.71 billion, or 38 US cents a share, in the three months to end-December, from $1.87 billion, or 41 cents, a year earlier, Coca-Cola said today in a statement. Excluding some items, profit was 46 cents a share.

Chief executive Muhtar Kent, facing slowing growth in emerging markets, said Coca-Cola will pare supply and data-management costs and overhaul marketing programs to generate $1 billion in savings by 2016.

Global sales volume rose 2 per cent for the year and 1 per cent for the quarter, less than the 4 per cent annual and 3 per cent quarterly growth reported a year ago.

Coke, like rival PepsiCo, has been battling declining soft drink sales in developed markets, especially the United States.– Bloomberg