SMC's net income in the third quarter would range between 405 million pesos and 800 million pesos ($9.88 million and $19.5 million), up from the year-earlier third quarter net of 290 million pesos, four analysts said. The figures exclude non-recurring items.

SMC is scheduled to release its interim earnings results on Thursday.

In the first half, SMC reported a net income of 723 million pesos from 2.89 billion pesos in the same period last year.

"SMC would have a 22-per cent revenue growth quarter on quarter but this is mainly due to price adjustments," said Alex Pomento, director and research head of Merrill Lynch Securities Philippines Inc.

"It's more of interest income generated from the sale of CCB (Coca-Cola Beverages Plc) which somehow reducedfinancial charges for the quarter." SMC sold all its 25 per cent stake in Coca-Cola Beverages in July for around 23 billion pesos.

CCB, which was listed on the London Stock Exchange in July, was created by spinning off the European operations of Coca-Cola Amatil Limited, the Australia-based bottler, and adding Coke's bottling operation in northern and central Italy. Parent company U.S.-based Coca-Cola has a 50.1 per cent stake in CCB.

SMC said earlier this month its domestic beer sales jumped four per cent in the first eight months from the same period last year.

Its international beer sales volume also started to reverse a declining trend due to strong sales in China.

But the beer giant's biggest headache was its debt burden estimated at 45 billion pesos as of August.

The company earlier said it would slowly retire its debts using proceeds totalling around 23 billion pesos from the sale of its entire 25 per cent stake in Coca-Cola Beverages Plc in July.

In August, it sold its 45 per cent stake inNestle Philippines Inc to partner Swiss food and beverage group Nestle S.A. for more than 30 billion pesos.

"As far as the balance sheet is concerned, (SMC) is not anymore a highly leveraged company," Pomento said.

"The (asset) sales proceeds would help a lot but not so much for them to recover their bottomlines... And they are not earmarking the entire thing for debt reduction," said Helen Alvarez, research head of All Asia Capital and Trust Co.

SMC chairman Eduardo Cojuangco, who took over in early July after a 12-year absence from the firm, earlier said he would prioritise the reduction of SMC's financing costs, open up alliances in the food and packaging sector and dispose off non-performing assets.

Analysts said the slowdown in the economy would continue to bode ill for San Miguel.

"No one is spared from that, especially (SMC) which has been the proxy for the health of the consumer market," Alvarez said.

"What they need to improve is the operational side. That is a function of themacroeconomic environment... Demand is low because of the prospect of an economic slowdown," Pomento said.