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20-F

As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 21, 2015

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 20-F

ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13

OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2014

Commission file number 001-35934

Fomento Económico Mexicano, S.A.B. de C.V.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Mexican Economic Development, Inc.

(Translation of registrant’s name into English)

United Mexican States

(Jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)

General Anaya No. 601 Pte.

Colonia Bella Vista

Monterrey, NL 64410 Mexico

(Address of principal executive offices)

Juan F. Fonseca

General Anaya No. 601 Pte.

Colonia Bella Vista

Monterrey, NL 64410 Mexico

(52-818) 328-6167

investor@femsa.com.mx

(Name, telephone, e-mail and/or facsimile number and

address of company contact person)

Securities registered or to be registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:


Title of each class:				Name of each exchange on which registered:
American Depositary Shares, each representing 10 BD Units, and each BD Unit consisting of one Series B Share, two Series D-B Shares and two Series D-L Shares, without par value				New York Stock Exchange
2.875% Senior Notes due 2023				New York Stock Exchange
4.375% Senior Notes due 2043				New York Stock Exchange

Securities registered or to be registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act:

None

Securities for which there is a reporting obligation pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Act:

None

Indicate the number of outstanding shares of each of the issuer’s classes of capital or common stock as of the close of the period covered by the annual report:


2,161,177,770		BD Units, each consisting of one Series B Share, two Series D-B Shares and two Series D-L Shares, without par value. The BD Units represent a total of 2,161,177,770 Series B Shares, 4,322,355,540 Series D-B Shares and 4,322,355,540 Series D-L Shares.
1,417,048,500		B Units, each consisting of five Series B Shares without par value. The B Units represent a total of 7,085,242,500 Series B Shares.

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act.


x Yes		¨ No

If this report is an annual or transition report, indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.


¨ Yes		x No

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate Web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files). N/A


¨ Yes		¨ No

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant: (1) has filed all reports required to be file by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports) and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.


x Yes		¨ No

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer or a non-accelerated filer. See definition of “accelerated filer and large accelerated filer” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act. (Check one):


Large Accelerated filer x		Accelerated filer ¨		Non-accelerated filer ¨

Indicate by check mark which basis of accounting the registrant has used to prepare the financial statements included in this filing:


U.S. GAAP ¨		IFRS x		Other ¨

If “Other” has been checked in response to the previous question, indicate by check mark which financial statement item the registrant has elected to follow.


¨ Item 17		¨ Item 18

If this is an annual report, indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act).


¨ Yes		x No


INTRODUCTION		1

	References	1
	Currency Translations and Estimates	1
	Forward-Looking Information	1

ITEMS 1.- 2.	NOT APPLICABLE	2

ITEM 3.	KEY INFORMATION	2

	Selected Consolidated Financial Data	2
	Dividends	4
	Exchange Rate Information	6
	Risk Factors	7

ITEM 4.	INFORMATION ON THE COMPANY	18

	The Company	18
	Overview	18
	Corporate Background	18
	Ownership Structure	21
	Significant Subsidiaries	22
	Business Strategy	22
	Coca-Cola FEMSA	23
	FEMSA Comercio	41
	Equity Investment in the Heineken Group	46
	Other Business	46
	Description of Property, Plant and Equipment	46
	Insurance	48
	Capital Expenditures and Divestitures	48
	Regulatory Matters	49

ITEM 4A.	UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS	58

ITEM 5.	OPERATING AND FINANCIAL REVIEW AND PROSPECTS	58

	Overview of Events, Trends and Uncertainties	58
	Recent Developments	59
	Operating Leverage	60
	Critical Accounting Judgments and Estimates	60
	Future Impact of Recently Issued Accounting Standards not yet in Effect	64
	Operating Results	65
	Liquidity and Capital Resources	72

ITEM 6.	DIRECTORS, SENIOR MANAGEMENT AND EMPLOYEES	79

	Directors	79
	Senior Management	86
	Compensation of Directors and Senior Management	89
	EVA Stock Incentive Plan	89

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	Insurance Policies	90
	Ownership by Management	90
	Board Practices	91
	Employees	92

ITEM 7.	MAJOR SHAREHOLDERS AND RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS	93

	Major Shareholders	93
	Related-Party Transactions	94
	Voting Trust	94
	Interest of Management in Certain Transactions	94
	Business Transactions between FEMSA, Coca-Cola FEMSA and The Coca-Cola Company	96

ITEM 8.	FINANCIAL INFORMATION	97

	Consolidated Financial Statements	97
	Dividend Policy	97
	Legal Proceedings	97
	Significant Changes	98

ITEM 9.	THE OFFER AND LISTING	98

	Description of Securities	98
	Trading Markets	99
	Trading on the Mexican Stock Exchange	99
	Price History	100

ITEM 10.	ADDITIONAL INFORMATION	102

	Bylaws	102
	Taxation	109
	Material Contracts	111
	Documents on Display	118

ITEM 11.	QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK	118

	Interest Rate Risk	118
	Foreign Currency Exchange Rate Risk	121
	Equity Risk	124
	Commodity Price Risk	124

ITEM 12.	DESCRIPTION OF SECURITIES OTHER THAN EQUITY SECURITIES	124

ITEM 12A.	DEBT SECURITIES	124

ITEM 12B.	WARRANTS AND RIGHTS	124

ITEM 12C.	OTHER SECURITIES	124

ITEM 12D.	AMERICAN DEPOSITARY SHARES	124

ITEM 13.- 14.	NOT APPLICABLE	125

ITEM 15.	CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES	125

ITEM 16A.	AUDIT COMMITTEE FINANCIAL EXPERT	127

ITEM 16B.	CODE OF ETHICS	127

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ITEM 16C.	PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTANT FEES AND SERVICES	128

ITEM 16D.	NOT APPLICABLE	129

ITEM 16E.	PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES BY THE ISSUER AND AFFILIATED PURCHASERS	129

ITEM 16F.	NOT APPLICABLE	129

ITEM 16G.	CORPORATE GOVERNANCE	129

ITEM 16H.	NOT APPLICABLE	131

ITEM 17.	NOT APPLICABLE	131

ITEM 18.	FINANCIAL STATEMENTS	131

ITEM 19.	EXHIBITS	132

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INTRODUCTION

This annual report contains information materially consistent with the information presented in the audited consolidated financial statements and is free of material misstatements of fact that are not material inconsistencies with the information in the audited consolidated financial statements.

References

The terms “FEMSA,” “our company,” “we,” “us” and “our,” are used in this annual report to refer to Fomento Económico Mexicano, S.A.B. de C.V. and, except where the context otherwise requires, its subsidiaries on a consolidated basis. We refer to our subsidiary Coca-Cola FEMSA, S.A.B. de C.V., as “Coca-Cola FEMSA,” our subsidiary FEMSA Comercio, S.A. de C.V., as “FEMSA Comercio,” and our subsidiary CB Equity LLP, as “CB Equity.”

The term “S.A.B.” stands for sociedad anónima bursátil, which is the term used in the United Mexican States, or Mexico, to denominate a publicly traded company under the Mexican Securities Market Law (Ley del Mercado de Valores), which we refer to as the Mexican Securities Law.

References to “U.S. dollars,” “US$,” “dollars” or “$” are to the lawful currency of the United States of America (which we refer to as the United States). References to “Mexican pesos,” “pesos” or “Ps.” are to the lawful currency of Mexico. References to “euros” or “€” are to the lawful currency of the European Economic and Monetary Union (which we refer to as the Euro Zone).

Currency Translations and Estimates

This annual report contains translations of certain Mexican peso amounts into U.S. dollars at specified rates solely for the convenience of the reader. These translations should not be construed as representations that the Mexican peso amounts actually represent such U.S. dollar amounts or could be converted into U.S. dollars at the rate indicated. Unless otherwise indicated, such U.S. dollar amounts have been translated from Mexican pesos at an exchange rate of Ps. 14.7500 to US$ 1.00, the noon buying rate for Mexican pesos on December 31, 2014, as published by the U.S. Federal Reserve Board in its H.10 Weekly Release of Foreign Exchange Rates. On April 17, 2015, this exchange rate was Ps. 15.3190 to US$ 1.00. See “Item 3. Key Information—Exchange Rate Information” for information regarding exchange rates since 2010.

To the extent estimates are contained in this annual report, we believe that such estimates, which are based on internal data, are reliable. Amounts in this annual report are rounded, and the totals may therefore not precisely equal the sum of the numbers presented.

Per capita growth rates and population data have been computed based upon statistics prepared by the Instituto Nacional de Estadística, Geografía e Informática of Mexico (National Institute of Statistics, Geography and Information, which we refer to as INEGI), the U.S. Federal Reserve Board and Banco de México (Bank of Mexico), local entities in each country and upon our estimates.

Forward-Looking Information

This annual report contains words, such as “believe,” “expect” and “anticipate” and similar expressions that identify forward-looking statements. Use of these words reflects our views about future events and financial performance. Actual results could differ materially from those projected in these forward-looking statements as a result of various factors that may be beyond our control, including but not limited to effects on our company from changes in our relationship with or among our affiliated companies, movements in the prices of raw materials, competition, significant developments in Mexico and the other countries in which we operate, our ability to successfully integrate mergers and acquisitions we have completed in recent years, international economic or political conditions or changes in our regulatory environment. Accordingly, we caution readers not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. In any event, these statements speak only as of their respective dates, and we undertake no obligation to update or revise any of them, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

ITEMS 1-2. NOT APPLICABLE

ITEM 3. KEY INFORMATION

Selected Consolidated Financial Data

This annual report includes (under Item 18) our audited consolidated statements of financial position as of December 31, 2014 and 2013, and the related consolidated income statements, consolidated statements of comprehensive income, changes in equity and cash flows for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012. Our audited consolidated financial statements are prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (“IFRS”) as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board (“IASB”). Our date of transition to IFRS was January 1, 2011.

Pursuant to IFRS, the information presented in this annual report presents financial information for 2014, 2013, 2012 and 2011 in nominal terms in Mexican pesos, taking into account local inflation of any hyperinflationary economic environment and converting from local currency to Mexican pesos using the official exchange rate at the end of the period published by the local central bank of each country categorized as a hyperinflationary economic environment (for this annual report, only Venezuela). Furthermore, for our Venezuelan entities we were able to convert local currency using one of the three legal exchange rates in that country. For further information, see Notes 3.3 and 3.4 to our audited consolidated financial statements. For each non-hyperinflationary economic environment, local currency is converted to Mexican pesos using the year-end exchange rate for assets and liabilities, the historical exchange rate for equity and the average exchange rate for the income statement. See Note 3.3 to our audited consolidated financial statements.

Our non-Mexican subsidiaries maintain their accounting records in the currency and in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the country where they are located. For presentation in our consolidated financial statements, we adjust these accounting records into IFRS and report in Mexican pesos under these standards.

Except when specifically indicated, information in this annual report on Form 20-F is presented as of December 31, 2014 and does not give effect to any transaction, financial or otherwise, subsequent to that date.

The following table presents selected financial information of our company. This information should be read in conjunction with, and is qualified in its entirety by reference to, our audited consolidated financial statements, including the notes thereto. The selected financial information contained herein is presented on a consolidated basis, and is not necessarily indicative of our financial position or results at or for any future date or period; see Note 3 to our audited consolidated financial statements for our significant accounting policies.


	Year Ended December 31,
	2014⁽¹⁾			2014⁽⁸⁾			2013⁽²⁾			2012⁽³⁾			2011⁽⁴⁾
	(in millions of Mexican pesos or millions of U.S. dollars, except percentages and share and per share data)
*Income Statement Data:*
*IFRS*
Total revenues	US$	17,861			Ps. 263,449			Ps. 258,097			Ps. 238,309			Ps. 201,540
Gross Profit		7,469			110,171			109,654			101,300			84,296
Income before Income Taxes and Share of the Profit of Associates and Joint Ventures Accounted for Using the Equity Method		1,610			23,744			25,080			27,530			23,552
Income taxes		424			6,253			7,756			7,949			7,618
Consolidated net income		1,534			22,630			22,155			28,051			20,901
Controlling interest net income		1,132			16,701			15,922			20,707			15,332
Non-controlling interest net income		402			5,929			6,233			7,344			5,569
Basic controlling interest net income:
Per Series B Share		0.06			0.83			0.79			1.03			0.77
Per Series D Share		0.07			1.04			1.00			1.30			0.96
Diluted controlling interest net income:
Per Series B Share		0.06			0.83			0.79			1.03			0.76
Per Series D Share		0.07			1.04			0.99			1.29			0.96
Weighted average number of shares outstanding (in millions):
Series B Shares		9,246.4			9,246.4			9,246.4			9,246.4			9,246.4
Series D Shares		8,644.7			8,644.7			8,644.7			8,644.7			8,644.7
Allocation of earnings:
Series B Shares		46.11	%		46.11	%		46.11	%		46.11	%		46.11	%
Series D Shares		53.89	%		53.89	%		53.89	%		53.89	%		53.89	%
Financial Position Data:
*IFRS*
Total assets	US$	25,503			Ps. 376,173			Ps. 359,192			Ps. 295,942			Ps. 263,362
Current liabilities		3,343			49,319			48,869			48,516			39,325
Long-term debt⁽⁵⁾		5,623			82,935			72,921			28,640			23,819
Other long-term liabilities		936			13,797			14,852			8,625			8,047
Capital stock		227			3,347			3,346			3,346			3,345
Total equity		15,601			230,122			222,550			210,161			192,171
Controlling interest		11,557			170,473			159,392			155,259			144,222
Non-controlling interest		4,044			59,649			63,158			54,902			47,949
Other Information
*IFRS*
Depreciation	US$	612			Ps. 9,029			Ps. 8,805			Ps. 7,175			Ps. 5,694
Capital expenditures⁽⁶⁾		1,231			18,163			17,882			15,560			12,666
Gross margin⁽⁷⁾		42	%		42	%		42	%		43	%		42	%

(*)

We have not included selected consolidated financial data as of and for the year ended December 31, 2010, as we began presenting our financial statements in accordance with IFRS for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2012, with an official IFRS “adoption date” of January 1, 2012 and a “transition date” to IFRS of January 1, 2011. Based on such adoption and transition dates, we were not required to

prepare financial statements in accordance with IFRS as of and for the year ended December 31, 2010 and therefore are unable to present selected financial data in accordance with IFRS for this date and period without unreasonable effort and expense.

(1)	Translation to U.S. dollar amounts at an exchange rate of Ps. 14.7500 to US$ 1.00 solely for the convenience of the reader.

(2)

Includes results of Coca-Cola FEMSA Philippines, Inc., or CCFPI (formerly Coca-Cola Bottlers Philippines, Inc.), from February 2013 using the equity method, Grupo Yoli, S.A. de C.V. “Group Yoli” from June 2013, Companhia Fluminense de Refrigerantes from September 2013, Spaipa S.A. Industria Brasileira de Bebidas (“Spaipa”) from November 2013 and other business acquisitions. See “Item 4—Information on the Company—The Company—Corporate Background,” Note 10 and Note 4 to our audited consolidated financial statements.

(3)	Includes results of Grupo Fomento Queretano, S.A.P.I. de C.V. “Grupo Fomento Queretano” from May 2012. See “Item 4—Information on the Company—The Company—Corporate Background,” and Note 4 to our audited consolidated financial statements.

(4)	Includes results of Administradora de Acciones del Noreste, S.A.P.I. de C.V. “Grupo Tampico” from October 2011 and from Corporación de los Angeles, S.A. de C.V. “Grupo CIMSA” from December 2011. See “Item 4—Information on the Company—The Company—Corporate Background”.

(5)	Includes long-term debt minus the current portion of long-term debt.

(6)	Includes investments in property, plant and equipment, intangible and other assets, net of cost of long lived assets sold, and write-off.

(7)	Gross margin is calculated by dividing gross profit by total revenues.

(8)

The exchange rate used to translate our operations in Venezuela as of and for the year ended December 31, 2014 was the SICAD II rate of 49.99 bolivars to US$ 1.00, compared to the official rate of 6.3 bolivars to US$ 1.00 that was used for 2013. See “Item 5—Operating and Financial Review and Prospects—Recent Developments”.

Dividends

We have historically paid dividends per BD Unit (including in the form of American Depositary Shares, or ADSs) approximately equal to or greater than 1% of the market price on the date of declaration, subject to changes in our results and financial position, including due to extraordinary economic events and to the factors described in “Item 3. Key Information—Risk Factors” that affect our financial condition and liquidity. These factors may affect whether or not dividends are declared and the amount of such dividends. We do not expect to be subject to any contractual restrictions on our ability to pay dividends, although our subsidiaries may be subject to such restrictions. Because we are a holding company with no significant operations of our own, we will have distributable profits and cash to pay dividends only to the extent that we receive dividends from our subsidiaries. Accordingly, we cannot assure you that we will pay dividends or as to the amount of any dividends.

The following table sets forth for each year the nominal amount of dividends per share that we declared in Mexican peso and U.S. dollar amounts and their respective payment dates for the 2010 to 2014 fiscal years:


Date Dividend Paid	Fiscal Year with Respect to which Dividend was Declared		Aggregate Amount of Dividend Declared		Per Series B Share Dividend		Per Series B Share Dividend⁽⁷⁾		Per Series D Share Dividend		Per Series D Share Dividend⁽⁷⁾
May 4, 2010 and November 3, 2010⁽¹⁾		2009		Ps. 2,600,000,000		Ps. 0.1296	$	0.0105		Ps. 0.1621	$	0.0132
May 4, 2010						Ps. 0.0648	$	0.0053		Ps. 0.0810	$	0.0066
November 3, 2010						Ps. 0.0648	$	0.0053		Ps. 0.0810	$	0.0066
May 4, 2011 and November 2, 2011⁽²⁾		2010		Ps. 4,600,000,000		Ps. 0.2294	$	0.0199		Ps. 0.28675	$	0.0249
May 4, 2011						Ps. 0.1147	$	0.0099		Ps. 0.14338	$	0.0124
November 2, 2011						Ps. 0.1147	$	0.0085		Ps. 0.14338	$	0.0106
May 3, 2012 and November 6, 2012⁽³⁾		2011		Ps. 6,200,000,000		Ps. 0.3092	$	0.0231		Ps. 0.3865	$	0.0288
May 3, 2012						Ps. 0.1546	$	0.0119		Ps. 0.1932	$	0.0149
November 6, 2012						Ps. 0.1546	$	0.0119		Ps. 0.1932	$	0.0149
May 7, 2013 and November 7, 2013⁽⁴⁾		2012		Ps. 6,684,103,000		Ps. 0.3333	$	0.0264		Ps. 0.4166	$	0.0330
May 7, 2013						Ps. 0.1666	$	0.0138		Ps. 0.2083	$	0.0173
November 7, 2013						Ps. 0.1666	$	0.0126		Ps. 0.2083	$	0.0158
December 18, 2013⁽⁵⁾		2012		Ps. 6,684,103,000		Ps. 0.3333	$	0.0257		Ps. 0.4166	$	0.0321
May 7, 2015 and November 5, 2015⁽⁶⁾		2014		Ps. 7,350,000,000		Ps. 0.3665	$	N/A		Ps. 0.4581	$	N/A
May 7, 2015						Ps. 0.1833	$	N/A		Ps. 0.2291	$	N/A
November 5, 2015						Ps. 0.1833	$	N/A		Ps. 0.2291	$	N/A

(1)	The dividend payment for 2009 was divided into two equal payments in Mexican pesos. The first payment was payable on May 4, 2010, with a record date of May 3, 2010, and the second payment was payable on November 3, 2010, with a record date of November 2, 2010.

(2)	The dividend payment for 2010 was divided into two equal payments in Mexican pesos. The first payment was payable on May 4, 2011, with a record date of May 3, 2011, and the second payment was payable on November 2, 2011, with a record date of November 1, 2011.

(3)	The dividend payment for 2011 was divided into two equal payments in Mexican pesos. The first payment was payable on May 3, 2012 with a record date of May 2, 2012, and the second payment was payable on November 6, 2012 with a record date of November 5, 2012.

(4)	The dividend payment for 2012 was divided into two equal payments in Mexican pesos. The first payment was payable on May 7, 2013 with a record date of May 6, 2013, and the second payment was payable on November 7, 2013 with a record date of November 6, 2013.

(5)	The dividend payment declared in December 2013 was payable on December 18, 2013 with a record date of December 17, 2013.

(6)

The dividend payment for 2014 will be divided into two equal payments. The first payment will become payable on May 7, 2015 with a record date of May 6, 2015, and the second payment will become payable on November 5, 2015 with a record date of November 4, 2015. The dividend payment for 2014 will be derived from the balance of the net tax profit account for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2013. See “Item 4. Information on the Company—Regulatory Matters—Mexican Tax Reform”.

(7)	Translations to U.S. dollars are based on the exchange rates on the dates the payments were made.

At the annual ordinary general shareholders meeting, or AGM, the board of directors submits the financial statements of our company for the previous fiscal year, together with a report thereon by the board of directors. Once the holders of Series B Shares have approved the financial statements, they determine the allocation of our net profits for the preceding year. Mexican law requires the allocation of at least 5% of net profits to a legal reserve, which is not subsequently available for distribution, until the amount of the legal reserve equals 20% of our paid in capital stock. As of the date of this report, the legal reserve of our company is fully constituted. Thereafter, the holders of Series B Shares may determine and allocate a certain percentage of net profits to any general or special reserve, including a reserve for open-market purchases of our shares. The remainder of net profits is available for distribution in the form of dividends to our shareholders. Dividends may only be paid if net profits are sufficient to offset losses from prior fiscal years.

Our bylaws provide that dividends will be allocated among the outstanding and fully paid shares at the time a dividend is declared in such manner that each Series D-B Share and Series D-L Share receives 125% of the dividend distributed in respect of each Series B Share. Holders of Series D-B Shares and Series D-L Shares are entitled to this dividend premium in connection with all dividends paid by us other than payments in connection with the liquidation of our company.

Subject to certain exceptions contained in the deposit agreement dated May 11, 2007, among FEMSA, The Bank of New York Mellon (formerly The Bank of New York), as ADS depositary, and holders and beneficial owners from time to time of our ADSs, evidenced by American Depositary Receipts, or ADRs, any dividends distributed to holders of our ADSs will be paid to the ADS depositary in Mexican pesos and will be converted by the ADS depositary into U.S. dollars. As a result, restrictions on conversion of Mexican pesos into foreign currencies may affect the ability of holders of our ADSs to receive U.S. dollars, and exchange rate fluctuations may affect the U.S. dollar amount actually received by holders of our ADSs.

Exchange Rate Information

The following table sets forth, for the periods indicated, the high, low, average and year-end noon exchange rate, expressed in Mexican pesos per U.S. dollar, as published by the U.S. Federal Reserve Board in its H.10 Weekly Release of Foreign Exchange Rates. The rates have not been restated in constant currency units and therefore represent nominal historical figures.


Year ended December 31,	Exchange Rate
	High		Low		Average⁽¹⁾		Year End
2010		13.19		12.16		12.64		12.38
2011		14.25		11.51		12.46		13.95
2012		14.37		12.63		13.14		12.96
2013		13.43		11.98		12.86		13.10
2014		14.79		12.84		13.37		14.75

(1)	Average month-end rates.


	Exchange Rate
	High		Low		Period End
2013:
First Quarter		Ps.12.88		Ps.12.32		Ps.12.32
Second Quarter		13.41		11.98		12.99
Third Quarter		13.43		12.50		13.16
Fourth Quarter		13.25		12.77		13.10
2014:
First Quarter		Ps.13.51		Ps.13.00		Ps.13.06
Second Quarter		13.14		12.85		12.97
Third Quarter		13.48		12.93		13.43
Fourth Quarter		14.79		13.39		14.75
October		13.57		13.39		13.48
November		13.92		13.54		13.92
December		14.79		13.94		14.75
2015:
January		Ps.15.01		Ps.14.56		Ps.15.01
February		15.10		14.75		14.94
March		15.58		14.93		15.25
First Quarter		15.58		14.56		15.25

RISK FACTORS

Risks Related to Our Company

Coca-Cola FEMSA

Coca-Cola FEMSA’s business depends on its relationship with The Coca-Cola Company, and changes in this relationship may adversely affect its results and financial condition.

Substantially all of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s sales are derived from sales of Coca-Cola trademark beverages. Coca-Cola FEMSA produces, markets, sells and distributes Coca-Cola trademark beverages through standard bottler agreements in certain territories in the countries in which it operates. See “Item 4. Information on the Company—Coca-Cola FEMSA—Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Territories.” Through its rights under Coca-Cola FEMSA’s bottler agreements and as a large shareholder, The Coca-Cola Company has the right to participate in the process for making certain decisions related to Coca-Cola FEMSA’s business.

The Coca-Cola Company may unilaterally set the price for its concentrate. In addition, under Coca-Cola FEMSA’s bottler agreements, it is prohibited from bottling or distributing any other beverages without The Coca-Cola Company’s authorization or consent, and may not transfer control of the bottler rights of any of its territories without prior consent from The Coca-Cola Company.

The Coca-Cola Company also makes significant contributions to Coca-Cola FEMSA’s marketing expenses, although it is not required to contribute a particular amount. Accordingly, The Coca-Cola Company may discontinue or reduce such contributions at any time.

Coca-Cola FEMSA depends on The Coca-Cola Company to continue with its bottler agreements. All of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s bottler agreements are automatically renewable for ten-year terms, subject to the right of either party to give prior notice that it does not wish to renew the applicable agreement. In addition, these agreements generally may be terminated in the case of material breach. See “Item 10. Additional Information—Material Contracts—Material Contracts Relating to Coca-Cola FEMSA—Bottler Agreements.” Termination would prevent Coca-Cola FEMSA from selling Coca-Cola trademark beverages in the affected territory and would have an adverse effect on Coca-Cola FEMSA’s business, financial condition, results and prospects.

The Coca-Cola Company has substantial influence on the conduct of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s business, which may result in Coca-Cola FEMSA taking actions contrary to the interests of its remaining shareholders.

The Coca-Cola Company has substantial influence on the conduct of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s business. As of April 17, 2015, The Coca-Cola Company indirectly owned 28.1% of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s outstanding capital stock, representing 37.0% of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s shares with full voting rights. The Coca-Cola Company is entitled to appoint five of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s maximum of 21 directors and the vote of at least two of them is required to approve certain actions by Coca-Cola FEMSA’s board of directors. As of April 17, 2015, we indirectly owned 47.9% of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s outstanding capital stock, representing 63.0% of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s capital stock with full voting rights. We are entitled to appoint 13 of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s maximum of 21 directors and all of its executive officers. We and The Coca-Cola Company together, or only we in certain circumstances, have the power to determine the outcome of all actions requiring the approval of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s board of directors, and we and The Coca-Cola Company together, or only we in certain circumstances, have the power to determine the outcome of all actions requiring the approval of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s shareholders. See “Item 10. Additional Information—Material Contracts—Material Contracts Relating to Coca-Cola FEMSA—Shareholders Agreement.” The interests of The Coca-Cola Company may be different from the interests of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s remaining shareholders, which may result in Coca-Cola FEMSA taking actions contrary to the interests of its remaining shareholders.

Changes in consumer preference and public concern about health related issues could reduce demand for some of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s products.

The non-alcoholic beverage industry is evolving as a result of, among other things, changes in consumer preferences and regulatory actions. There have been different plans and actions adopted in recent years by governmental authorities in some of the countries where Coca-Cola FEMSA operates that have resulted in increased taxes or the imposition of new taxes on the sale of beverages containing certain sweeteners, and other regulatory measures, such as restrictions on advertising for some of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s products. Moreover, researchers, health advocates and dietary guidelines are encouraging consumers to reduce their consumption of certain types of beverages sweetened with sugar and High Fructose Corn Syrup, or HFCS. In addition, concerns over the environmental impact of plastic may reduce the consumption of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s products sold in plastic bottles or result in additional taxes that would adversely affect consumer demand. Increasing public concern about these issues, possible new or increased taxes, regulatory measures and governmental regulations could reduce demand for some of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s products which would adversely affect its results.

Competition could adversely affect Coca-Cola FEMSA’s financial performance.

The beverage industry in the territories in which Coca-Cola FEMSA operates is highly competitive. Coca-Cola FEMSA faces competition from other bottlers of sparkling beverages, such as Pepsi products, and from producers of low cost beverages or “B brands.” Coca-Cola FEMSA also competes in beverage categories other than sparkling beverages, such as water, juice-based beverages, teas, sport drinks and value-added dairy products. Although competitive conditions are different in each of its territories, Coca-Cola FEMSA competes principally in terms of price, packaging, consumer sales promotions, customer service and product innovation. See “Item 4. Information on the Company—Coca-Cola FEMSA—Competition.” There can be no assurances that Coca-Cola FEMSA will be able to avoid lower pricing as a result of competitive pressure. Lower pricing, changes made in response to competition and changes in consumer preferences may have an adverse effect on Coca-Cola FEMSA’s financial performance.

Water shortages or any failure to maintain existing concessions could adversely affect Coca-Cola FEMSA’s business.

Water is an essential component of all of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s products. Coca-Cola FEMSA obtains water from various sources in its territories, including springs, wells, rivers and municipal and state water companies pursuant to either concessions granted by governments in its various territories or pursuant to contracts.

Coca-Cola FEMSA obtains the vast majority of the water used in its production from municipal utility companies and pursuant to concessions to use wells, which are generally granted based on studies of the existing and projected groundwater supply. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s existing water concessions or contracts to obtain water may be terminated by governmental authorities under certain circumstances and their renewal depends on receiving necessary authorizations from local and/or federal water authorities. See “Item 4. Information on the Company—Regulatory Matters—Water Supply.” In some of its other territories, Coca-Cola FEMSA’s existing water supply may not be sufficient to meet its future production needs, and the available water supply may be adversely affected by shortages or changes in governmental regulations and environmental changes.

Water supply in the São Paulo region has been recently affected by low rainfall, which has affected the main water reservoir that serves the greater São Paulo area (Cantareira). Although Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Jundiaí plant does not obtain water from this water reservoir, water shortages or changes in governmental regulations aimed at rationalizing water in the region could affect Coca-Cola FEMSA’s water supply in its Jundiaí plant.

We cannot assure you that water will be available in sufficient quantities to meet Coca-Cola FEMSA’s future production needs or will prove sufficient to meet its water supply needs.

Increases in the prices of raw materials would increase Coca-Cola FEMSA’s cost of goods sold and may adversely affect its results.

In addition to water, Coca-Cola FEMSA’s most significant raw materials are (1) concentrate, which it acquires from affiliates of The Coca-Cola Company, (2) sweeteners and (3) packaging materials. Prices for Coca-Cola trademark beverages concentrate are determined by The Coca-Cola Company as a percentage of the weighted average retail price in local currency, net of applicable taxes. The Coca-Cola Company has unilaterally increased concentrate prices in the past and may do so again in the future. We cannot assure you that The Coca-Cola Company will not increase the price of the concentrate for Coca-Cola trademark beverages or change the manner in which such price will be calculated in the future. Coca-Cola FEMSA may not be successful in negotiating or implementing measures to mitigate the negative effect this may have in the pricing of its products or its results. The prices for Coca-Cola FEMSA’s remaining raw materials are driven by market prices and local availability, the imposition of import duties and restrictions and fluctuations in exchange rates. Coca-Cola FEMSA is also required to meet all of its supply needs from suppliers approved by The Coca-Cola Company, which may limit the number of suppliers available to it. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s sales prices are denominated in the local currency in each country in which it operates, while the prices of certain materials, including those used in the bottling of its products, mainly resin, preforms to make plastic bottles, finished plastic bottles, aluminum cans and HFCS, are paid in or determined with reference to the U.S. dollar, and therefore may increase if the U.S. dollar appreciates against the currency of the countries in which Coca-Cola FEMSA operates. We cannot anticipate whether the U.S. dollar will appreciate or depreciate with respect to such currencies in the future. See “Item 4. Information on the Company—Coca-Cola FEMSA—Raw Materials.”

Coca-Cola FEMSA’s most significant packaging raw material costs arise from the purchase of resin and plastic preforms to make plastic bottles and from the purchase of finished plastic bottles, the prices of which are related to crude oil prices and global resin supply. The average prices that Coca-Cola FEMSA paid for resin and plastic preforms in U.S. dollars in 2014, as compared to 2013 were lower in Mexico, Central America, Colombia and Argentina, remained flat in Venezuela and were higher in Brazil. We cannot assure you that prices will not increase in future periods. During 2014, average sweetener prices in Mexico, Brazil and Argentina were lower as compared to 2013, remained flat in Colombia and Nicaragua and were higher in Venezuela, Costa Rica and Panama. From 2010 through 2014, international sugar prices were volatile due to various factors, including shifting demands, availability and climate issues affecting production and distribution. In all of the countries in which Coca-Cola FEMSA operates, other than Brazil, sugar prices are subject to local regulations and other barriers to market entry that cause Coca-Cola FEMSA to pay in excess of international market prices. See “Item 4. Information on the Company—Coca-Cola FEMSA—Raw Materials.” We cannot assure you that Coca-Cola FEMSA’s raw material prices will not further increase in the future. Increases in the prices of raw materials would increase Coca-Cola FEMSA’s cost of goods sold and adversely affect its financial performance.

Taxes could adversely affect Coca-Cola FEMSA’s business.

The countries in which Coca-Cola FEMSA operates may adopt new tax laws or modify existing tax laws to increase taxes applicable to Coca-Cola FEMSA’s business or products. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s products are subject to certain taxes in many of the countries in which it operates, such as certain countries in Central America, Mexico, Brazil, Venezuela and Argentina, which impose taxes on sparkling beverages. See “Item 4. Information on the Company—Regulatory Matters—Taxation of Beverages.” The imposition of new taxes or increases in existing taxes, or changes in the interpretation of tax laws and regulation by tax authorities, may have a material adverse effect on Coca-Cola FEMSA’s business, financial condition, prospects and results.

Tax legislation in some of the countries in which Coca-Cola FEMSA operates have recently been subject to major changes. See “Item 4. Information on the Company—Regulatory Matters—Mexican Tax Reform” and Item 4. Information on the Company—Regulatory Matters—Other Recent Tax Reforms.” We cannot assure you that these reforms or other reforms adopted by governments in the countries in which Coca-Cola FEMSA operates will not have a material adverse effect on its business, financial condition and results of operation.

Regulatory developments may adversely affect Coca-Cola FEMSA’s business.

Coca-Cola FEMSA is subject to regulation in each of the territories in which it operates. The principal areas in which Coca-Cola FEMSA is subject to regulation are water, environment, labor, taxation, health and antitrust. Regulation can also affect Coca-Cola FEMSA’s ability to set prices for its products. See “Item 4. Information on the Company—Regulatory Matters.” The adoption of new laws or regulations or a stricter interpretation or enforcement thereof in the countries in which Coca-Cola FEMSA operates may increase its operating costs or impose restrictions on its operations which, in turn, may adversely affect Coca-Cola FEMSA’s financial condition, business and results. In particular, environmental standards are becoming more stringent in several of the countries in which Coca-Cola FEMSA operates, and Coca-Cola FEMSA is in the process of complying with these standards; however we cannot assure you that in any event Coca-Cola FEMSA will be able to meet any timelines for compliance established by the relevant regulatory authorities. See “Item 4. Information on the Company—Regulatory Matters—Environmental Matters.” Further changes in current regulations may result in an increase in compliance costs, which may have an adverse effect on Coca-Cola FEMSA’s future results or financial condition.

Voluntary price restraints or statutory price controls have been imposed historically in several of the countries in which Coca-Cola FEMSA operates. Currently, there are no price controls on Coca-Cola FEMSA’s products in any of the territories in which it has operations, except for those in Argentina, where authorities directly supervise five of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s products sold through supermarkets as a measure to control inflation, and Venezuela, where the government has imposed price controls on certain of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s products, including bottled water, and has recently imposed a limit on profits earned on the sale of goods, including Coca-Cola FEMSA’s products, seeking to maintain price stability of, and equal access to, goods and services. If Coca-Cola FEMSA exceeds such limit on profits, it may be forced to reduce the prices of its products in Venezuela, which would in turn adversely affect its business and results of operations. In addition, consumer protection laws in Venezuela are subject to continuing review and changes, and any such changes may have an adverse impact on Coca-Cola FEMSA. We cannot assure you that existing or future regulations in Venezuela relating to goods and services will not result in increased limits on profits or a forced reduction of prices affecting Coca-Cola FEMSA’s products, which could have a negative effect on its results of operations. The imposition of these restrictions or voluntary price restraints in other territories may have an adverse effect on Coca-Cola FEMSA’s results and financial position. See “Item 4. Information on the Company—Regulatory Matters—Price Controls.” We cannot assure you that governmental authorities in any country where Coca-Cola FEMSA operates will not impose statutory price controls or that Coca-Cola FEMSA will not need to implement voluntary price restraints in the future.

Unfavorable results of legal proceedings could have an adverse effect on Coca-Cola FEMSA’s results or financial condition.

Coca-Cola FEMSA’s operations have from time to time been and may continue to be subject to investigations and proceedings by antitrust authorities, and litigation relating to alleged anticompetitive practices. Coca-Cola FEMSA has also been subject to investigations and proceedings on environmental and labor matters. We cannot assure you that these investigations and proceedings will not have an adverse effect on Coca-Cola FEMSA’s results or financial condition. See “Item 8. Financial Information—Legal Proceedings.”

Weather conditions may adversely affect Coca-Cola FEMSA’s results.

Lower temperatures, higher rainfall and other adverse weather conditions such as typhoons and hurricanes may negatively impact consumer patterns, which may result in lower per capita consumption of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s beverage offerings. Additionally, such adverse weather conditions may affect road infrastructure and points of sale in the territories in which Coca-Cola FEMSA operates and limit Coca-Cola FEMSA’s ability to sell and distribute its products, thus affecting its results.

Coca-Cola FEMSA may not be able to successfully integrate its recent acquisitions and achieve the operational efficiencies and/or expected synergies.

Coca-Cola FEMSA has and may continue to acquire bottling operations and other businesses. A key element to achieve the benefits and expected synergies of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s recent and future acquisitions and/or mergers is to integrate the operation of acquired or merged businesses into its operations in a timely and effective manner. Coca-Cola FEMSA may incur unforeseen liabilities in connection with acquiring, taking control of, or managing bottling operations and other businesses and may encounter difficulties and unforeseen or additional costs in restructuring and integrating them into its operating structure. We cannot assure you that these efforts will be successful or completed as expected by Coca-Cola FEMSA, and Coca-Cola FEMSA’s business, results and financial condition could be adversely affected if it is unable to do so.

Political and social events in the countries in which Coca-Cola FEMSA operates may significantly affect its operations.

Political and social events in the countries in which Coca-Cola FEMSA operates, as well as changes in governmental policies may have an adverse effect on Coca-Cola FEMSA’s business, results of operations and financial condition. In recent years, some of the governments in the countries in which Coca-Cola FEMSA operates have implemented and may continue to implement significant changes in laws, public policy and/or regulations that could affect the political and social conditions in these countries. Any such changes may have an adverse effect on Coca-Cola FEMSA’s business, results of operations and financial condition. We cannot assure you that political or social developments in any of the countries in which Coca-Cola FEMSA operates, such as the election of new administrations, political disagreements, civil disturbances and the rise in violence and perception of violence, over which Coca-Cola FEMSA has no control, will not have a corresponding adverse effect on the local or global markets or on Coca-Cola FEMSA’s business, results of operations and financial condition.

FEMSA Comercio

Competition from other retailers in Mexico could adversely affect FEMSA Comercio’s business.

The Mexican retail sector is highly competitive. FEMSA participates in the retail sector primarily through FEMSA Comercio. FEMSA Comercio’s OXXO stores face competition from small-format stores like 7-Eleven, Extra, Super City, Círculo K stores and other numerous chains of retailers across Mexico, from other regional small-format retailers to small informal neighborhood stores. In particular, small informal neighborhood stores can sometimes avoid regulatory oversight and taxation, enabling them to sell certain products at below market prices. In addition, these small informal neighborhood stores could improve their technological capabilities so as to enable credit card transactions and electronic payment of utility bills, which would diminish FEMSA Comercio’s competitive advantage. FEMSA Comercio may face additional competition from new market entrants. Increased competition may limit the number of new locations available to FEMSA Comercio and require FEMSA Comercio to modify its product offering or pricing. In addition, consumers may prefer alternative products or store formats offered by competitors. As a result, FEMSA Comercio’s results and financial position may be adversely affected by competition in the future.

Sales of OXXO small-format stores may be adversely affected by changes in economic conditions in Mexico.

Small-format stores often sell certain products at a premium. The small-format store market is thus highly sensitive to economic conditions, since an economic slowdown is often accompanied by a decline in consumer purchasing power, which in turn results in a decline in the overall consumption of FEMSA Comercio’s main product categories. During periods of economic slowdown, OXXO stores may experience a decline in traffic per store and purchases per customer, and this may result in a decline in FEMSA Comercio’s results.

Regulatory changes may adversely affect FEMSA Comercio’s business.

In Mexico, FEMSA Comercio is subject to regulation in areas such as labor, taxation and local permits. The adoption of new laws or regulations, or a stricter interpretation or enforcement of existing laws and regulations, may increase operating costs or impose restrictions on FEMSA Comercio’s operations which, in turn, may adversely affect FEMSA Comercio’s financial condition, business and results. Further changes in current regulations may negatively impact traffic, revenues, operational costs and commercial practices, which may have an adverse effect on FEMSA Comercio’s future results or financial condition.

Taxes could adversely affect FEMSA Comercio’s business.

Mexico, where FEMSA Comercio primarily operates, may adopt new tax laws or modify existing laws to increase taxes applicable to FEMSA Comercio’s business or products. The imposition of new taxes or increases in existing taxes, or changes in the interpretation of tax laws and regulation by tax authorities, may have a material adverse effect on FEMSA Comercio’s business, financial condition, prospects and results. See “Item 4. Information on the Company—Regulatory Matters—Mexican Tax Reform.”

FEMSA Comercio may not be able to maintain its historic growth rate.

FEMSA Comercio increased the number of OXXO stores at a compound annual growth rate of 11.1% from 2010 to 2014. The growth in the number of OXXO stores has driven growth in total revenue and results at FEMSA Comercio over the same period. As the overall number of stores increases, percentage growth in the number of OXXO stores is likely to decrease. In addition, as small-format store penetration in Mexico grows, the number of viable new store locations may decrease, and new store locations may be less favorable in terms of same-store sales, average ticket and store traffic. As a result, FEMSA Comercio’s future results and financial condition may not be consistent with prior periods and may be characterized by lower growth rates in terms of total revenue and results. In Colombia, FEMSA Comercio may not be able to maintain similar historic growth rates to those in Mexico.

FEMSA Comercio’s business depends heavily on information technology.

FEMSA Comercio invests aggressively in information technology (which we refer to as IT) in order to maximize its value generation potential. Given the rapid speed at which FEMSA Comercio adds new services and products to its commercial offerings, the development of IT systems, hardware and software needs to keep pace with the growth of the business. If these systems became obsolete or if planning for future IT investments were inadequate, it could affect FEMSA Comercio’s business by reducing the flexibility of its value proposition to consumers or by increasing its operating complexity, either of which could adversely affect FEMSA Comercio’s revenue-per-store trends.

FEMSA Comercio’s business could be adversely affected by a failure, interruption, or breach of our IT system.

FEMSA Comercio’s business relies heavily on its advanced IT system to effectively manage its data, communications, connectivity, and other business processes. Although we constantly improve our IT system and protect it with advanced security measures, it may still be subject to defects, interruptions, or security breaches such as viruses or data theft. Such a defect, interruption, or breach could adversely affect FEMSA Comercio’s results or financial position.

FEMSA Comercio’s business may be adversely affected by an increase in the price of electricity.

The performance of FEMSA Comercio’s stores would be adversely affected by increases in the price of utilities on which the stores depend, such as electricity. Although the price of electricity in Mexico has remained stable recently, it could potentially increase as a result of inflation, shortages, interruptions in supply, or other reasons, and such an increase could adversely affect our results or financial position.

FEMSA Comercio’s business acquisitions may lead to decreased profit margins.

FEMSA Comercio has recently entered into new markets through the acquisition of other small-format retail businesses. FEMSA Comercio continued with this strategy in 2014 and may continue it into the future. These new businesses are currently less profitable than OXXO, and might therefore marginally dilute FEMSA Comercio’s margins in the short to medium term.

Risks Related to Our Holding of Heineken N.V. and Heineken Holding N.V. Shares

FEMSA does not control Heineken N.V.’s and Heineken Holding N.V.’s decisions.

On April 30, 2010, FEMSA announced the closing of the transaction pursuant to which FEMSA agreed to exchange 100% of its beer operations for a 20% economic interest in Heineken N.V. and Heineken Holding N.V. (which, together with their respective subsidiaries, we refer to as Heineken or the Heineken Group). As a consequence of this transaction, which we refer to as the Heineken transaction, FEMSA now participates in the Heineken Holding N.V. Board of Directors, which we refer to as the Heineken Holding Board, and in the Heineken N.V. Supervisory Board, which we refer to as the Heineken Supervisory Board. However, FEMSA is not a majority or controlling shareholder of Heineken N.V. or Heineken Holding N.V., nor does it control the decisions of the Heineken Holding Board or the Heineken Supervisory Board. Therefore, the decisions made by the majority or controlling shareholders of Heineken N.V. or Heineken Holding N.V. or the Heineken Holding Board or the Heineken Supervisory Board may not be consistent with or may not consider the interests of FEMSA’s shareholders or may be adverse to the interests of FEMSA’s shareholders. Additionally, FEMSA has agreed not to disclose non-public information and decisions taken by Heineken.

Heineken is present in a large number of countries.

Heineken is a global brewer and distributor of beer in a large number of countries. As a consequence of the Heineken transaction, FEMSA shareholders are indirectly exposed to the political, economic and social circumstances affecting the markets in which Heineken is present, which may have an adverse effect on the value of FEMSA’s interest in Heineken, and, consequently, the value of FEMSA shares.

The Mexican peso may strengthen compared to the Euro.

In the event of a depreciation of the euro against the Mexican peso, the fair value of FEMSA’s investment in Heineken’s shares will be adversely affected.

Furthermore, the cash flow that is expected to be received in the form of dividends from Heineken will be in euros, and therefore, in the event of a depreciation of the euro against the Mexican peso, the amount of expected cash flow will be adversely affected.

Heineken N.V. and Heineken Holding N.V. are publicly listed companies.

Heineken N.V. and Heineken Holding N.V. are listed companies whose stock trades publicly and is subject to market fluctuation. A reduction in the price of Heineken N.V. or Heineken Holding N.V. shares would result in a reduction in the economic value of FEMSA’s participation in Heineken.

Risks Related to Our Principal Shareholders and Capital Structure

A majority of our voting shares are held by a voting trust, which effectively controls the management of our company, and the interests of which may differ from those of other shareholders.

As of March 19, 2015, a voting trust, of which the participants are members of seven families, owned 38.69% of our capital stock and 74.86% of our capital stock with full voting rights, consisting of the Series B Shares. Consequently, the voting trust has the power to elect a majority of the members of our board of directors and to play a significant or controlling role in the outcome of substantially all matters to be decided by our board of directors or our shareholders. The interests of the voting trust may differ from those of our other shareholders. See “Item 7. Major Shareholders and Related Party Transactions” and “Item 10. Additional Information—Bylaws—Voting Rights and Certain Minority Rights.”

Holders of Series D-B and D-L Shares have limited voting rights.

Holders of Series D-B and D-L Shares have limited voting rights and are only entitled to vote on specific matters, such as certain changes in the form of our corporate organization, dissolution, or liquidation, a merger with a company with a distinct corporate purpose, a merger in which we are not the surviving entity, a change of our jurisdiction of incorporation, the cancellation of the registration of the Series D-B and D-L Shares and any other matters that expressly require approval from such holders under the Mexican Securities Law. As a result of these limited voting rights, Series D-B and D-L holders will not be able to influence our business or operations. See “Item 7. Major Shareholders and Related Party Transactions—Major Shareholders” and “Item 10. Additional Information—Bylaws—Voting Rights and Certain Minority Rights.”

Holders of ADSs may not be able to vote at our shareholder meetings.

Our shares are traded on the New York Stock Exchange, or NYSE, in the form of ADSs. We cannot assure you that holders of our shares in the form of ADSs will receive notice of shareholders’ meetings from our ADS depositary in sufficient time to enable such holders to return voting instructions to the ADS depositary in a timely manner. In the event that instructions are not received with respect to any shares underlying ADSs, the ADS depositary will, subject to certain limitations, grant a proxy to a person designated by us in respect of these shares. In the event that this proxy is not granted, the ADS depositary will vote these shares in the same manner as the majority of the shares of each class for which voting instructions are received.

Holders of BD Units in the United States and holders of ADSs may not be able to participate in any future preemptive rights offering and as a result may be subject to dilution of their equity interests.

Under applicable Mexican law, if we issue new shares for cash as a part of a capital increase, other than in connection with a public offering of newly issued shares or treasury stock, we are generally required to grant our shareholders the right to purchase a sufficient number of shares to maintain their existing ownership percentage. Rights to purchase shares in these circumstances are known as preemptive rights. By law, we may not allow holders of our shares or ADSs who are located in the United States to exercise any preemptive rights in any future capital increases unless (1) we file a registration statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, which we refer to as the SEC, with respect to that future issuance of shares or (2) the offering qualifies for an exemption from the registration requirements of the U.S. Securities Act of 1933. At the time of any future capital increase, we will evaluate the costs and potential liabilities associated with filing a registration statement with the SEC, as well as the benefits of preemptive rights to holders of our shares in the form of ADSs in the United States and any other factors that we consider important in determining whether to file a registration statement.

We may decide not to file a registration statement with the SEC to allow holders of our shares or ADSs who are located in the United States to participate in a preemptive rights offering. In addition, under current Mexican law, the sale by the ADS depositary of preemptive rights and the distribution of the proceeds from such sales to the holders of our shares in the form of ADSs is not possible. As a result, the equity interest of holders of our shares in the form of ADSs would be diluted proportionately. See “Item 10. Additional Information—Bylaws—Preemptive Rights.”

The protections afforded to minority shareholders in Mexico are different from those afforded to minority shareholders in the United States.

Under Mexican law, the protections afforded to minority shareholders are different from, and may be less than, those afforded to minority shareholders in the United States. Mexican laws do not provide a remedy to shareholders relating to violations of fiduciary duties. There is no procedure for class actions as such actions are conducted in the United States and there are different procedural requirements for bringing shareholder lawsuits against directors for the benefit of companies. Therefore, it may be more difficult for minority shareholders to enforce their rights against us, our directors or our controlling shareholders than it would be for minority shareholders of a United States company.

Investors may experience difficulties in enforcing civil liabilities against us or our directors, officers and controlling persons.

FEMSA is organized under the laws of Mexico, and most of our directors, officers and controlling persons reside outside the United States. In addition, nearly all or a substantial portion of our assets and the assets of our subsidiaries are located outside the United States. As a result, it may be difficult for investors to effect service of process within the United States on such persons or to enforce judgments against them, including any action based on civil liabilities under the U.S. federal securities laws. There is doubt as to the enforceability against such persons in Mexico, whether in original actions or in actions to enforce judgments of U.S. courts, of liabilities based solely on the U.S. federal securities laws.

Developments in other countries may adversely affect the market for our securities.

The market value of securities of Mexican companies is, to varying degrees, influenced by economic and securities market conditions in other emerging market countries. Although economic conditions are different in each country, investors’ reaction to developments in one country can have effects on the securities of issuers in other countries, including Mexico. We cannot assure you that events elsewhere, especially in emerging markets, will not adversely affect the market value of our securities.

The failure or inability of our subsidiaries to pay dividends or other distributions to us may adversely affect us and our ability to pay dividends to holders of ADSs.

We are a holding company. Accordingly, our cash flows are principally derived from dividends, interest and other distributions made to us by our subsidiaries. Currently, our subsidiaries do not have contractual obligations that require them to pay dividends to us. In addition, debt and other contractual obligations of our subsidiaries may in the future impose restrictions on our subsidiaries’ ability to make dividend or other payments to us, which in turn may adversely affect our ability to pay dividends to shareholders and meet our debt and other obligations. As of March 31, 2015, we had no restrictions on our ability to pay dividends. Given the 2010 exchange of 100% of our ownership of the business of Cuauhtémoc Moctezuma Holding, S.A. de C.V. (formerly FEMSA Cerveza, S.A. de C.V.) (which we refer to as Cuauhtémoc Moctezuma or FEMSA Cerveza) for a 20% economic interest in Heineken, our non-controlling shareholder position in Heineken means that we will be unable to require payment of dividends with respect to the Heineken shares.

Risks Related to Mexico and the Other Countries in Which We Operate

Adverse economic conditions in Mexico may adversely affect our financial position and results.

We are a Mexican corporation, and our Mexican operations are our single most important geographic territory. For the year ended December 31, 2014, 68% of our consolidated total revenues were attributable to Mexico and at the net income level the percentage attributable to our Mexican operations is further reduced. During 2011, 2012 and 2013 the Mexican gross domestic product, or GDP, increased by approximately 4.0%, 4.0% and 1.4%, respectively, and in 2014 it only increased by approximately 2.1% on an annualized basis compared to 2013, due to lower performance from the mining, transportation and warehousing sectors in addition to a tough consumer environment. We cannot assure you that such conditions will not have a material adverse effect on our results and financial position going forward. The Mexican economy continues to be heavily influenced by the U.S. economy, and therefore, deterioration in economic conditions in, or delays in recovery of, the U.S. economy may hinder any recovery in Mexico. In the past, Mexico has experienced both prolonged periods of weak economic conditions and deteriorations in economic conditions that have had a negative impact on our results.

Our business may be significantly affected by the general condition of the Mexican economy, or by the rate of inflation in Mexico, interest rates in Mexico and exchange rates for, or exchange controls affecting, the Mexican peso. Decreases in the growth rate of the Mexican economy, periods of negative growth and/or increases in inflation or interest rates may result in lower demand for our products, lower real pricing of our products or a shift to lower margin products. Because a large percentage of our costs and expenses are fixed, we may not be able to reduce costs and expenses upon the occurrence of any of these events, and our profit margins may suffer as a result.

In addition, an increase in interest rates in Mexico would increase the cost of our debt and would cause an adverse effect on our financial position and results. Mexican peso-denominated debt constituted 42.7% of our total debt as of December 31, 2014.

Depreciation of the Mexican peso relative to the U.S. dollar could adversely affect our financial position and results.

Depreciation of the Mexican peso relative to the U.S. dollar increases the cost to us of a portion of the raw materials we acquire, the price of which is paid in or determined with reference to U.S. dollars, and of our debt obligations denominated in U.S. dollars, and thereby negatively affects our financial position and results. A severe devaluation or depreciation of the Mexican peso may result in disruption of the international foreign exchange markets and may limit our ability to transfer or to convert Mexican pesos into U.S. dollars and other currencies for the purpose of making timely payments of interest and principal on our U.S. dollar-denominated debt or obligations in other currencies. The Mexican peso is a free-floating currency and as such, it experiences exchange rate fluctuations relative to the U.S. dollar over time. During 2011, 2012 and 2013, the Mexican peso experienced fluctuations relative to the U.S. dollar consisting of 12.7% of depreciation, 7.1% of recovery and 1.0% of depreciation, respectively, compared to the years of 2010, 2011 and 2012. During 2014, the Mexican peso experienced a depreciation relative to the U.S. dollar of approximately 12.6% compared to 2013. In the first quarter of 2015, the Mexican peso appreciated approximately 3.2% relative to the U.S. dollar compared to the fourth quarter of 2014.

While the Mexican government does not currently restrict, and since 1982 has not restricted, the right or ability of Mexican or foreign persons or entities to convert Mexican pesos into U.S. dollars or to transfer other currencies out of Mexico, the Mexican government could institute restrictive exchange rate policies in the future, as it has done in the past. Currency fluctuations may have an adverse effect on our financial position, results and cash flows in future periods.

When the financial markets are volatile, as they have been in recent periods, our results may be substantially affected by variations in exchange rates and commodity prices, and to a lesser degree, interest rates. These effects include foreign exchange gain and loss on assets and liabilities denominated in U.S. dollars, fair value gain and loss on derivative financial instruments, commodities prices and changes in interest income and interest expense. These effects can be much more volatile than our operating performance and our operating cash flows.

Political events in Mexico could adversely affect our operations.

Mexican political events may significantly affect our operations. Presidential elections in Mexico occur every six years, with the most recent one occurring in July 2012. Enrique Peña Nieto, a member of the Partido Revolucionario Institucional, was elected as the president of Mexico and took office on December 1, 2012. In addition, the Mexican Congress has recently approved a number of structural reforms intended to modernize certain sectors of and foster growth in the Mexican economy, and is continuing to approve further reforms. Now two years into his term, President Peña Nieto will face significant challenges as the structural reforms approved by the Mexican Congress begin having an effect on the Mexican economy and population. Furthermore, no single party has a majority in the Senate or the Cámara de Diputados (House of Representatives), and the absence of a clear majority by a single party could result in government gridlock and political uncertainty. We cannot provide any assurances that political developments in Mexico, over which we have no control, will not have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results and prospects.

Security risks in Mexico could increase, and this could adversely affect our results.

The presence of violence among drug cartels, and between these and the Mexican law enforcement and armed forces, pose a risk to our business. Organized criminal activity and related violent incidents have decreased relative to 2012 and 2013, but remain prevalent in some parts of Mexico. These incidents are relatively concentrated along the northern Mexican border, as well as in certain other Mexican states such as Sinaloa, Michoacán and Guerrero. The north of Mexico is an important region for our retail operations, and an increase in crime rates could negatively affect our sales and customer traffic, increase our security expenses, and result in higher turnover of personnel or damage to the perception of our brands. This situation could worsen and adversely impact our business and financial results because consumer habits and patterns adjust to the increased perceived and real security risks, as people refrain from going out as much and gradually shift some on-premise consumption to off-premise consumption of food and beverages on certain social occasions.

Depreciation of local currencies in other Latin American countries in which we operate may adversely affect our financial position.

The devaluation of the local currencies against the U.S. dollar in our non-Mexican territories can increase our operating costs in these countries, and depreciation of the local currencies against the Mexican peso can negatively affect our results for these countries. In recent years, the value of the currency in the countries in which we operate has been relatively stable relative to the Mexican peso, except in Venezuela. During 2014, in addition to Venezuela, the currencies of Brazil and Argentina also depreciated against the Mexican peso. Future currency devaluation or the imposition of exchange controls in any of these countries, or in Mexico, would have an adverse effect on our financial position and results.

We have operated under exchange controls in Venezuela since 2003, which limits our ability to remit dividends abroad or make payments other than in local currency and that may increase the real price paid for raw materials and services purchased in local currency. We have historically used the official exchange rate (currently 6.30 bolivars to US$ 1.00) in our Venezuelan operations. Nonetheless, since the beginning of 2014, the Venezuelan government announced a series of changes to the Venezuelan exchange control regime.

In January 2014, the Venezuelan government announced an exchange rate determined by the state-run system known as the Sistema Complementario de Administración de Divisas, or SICAD. In March 2014, the Venezuelan government announced a new law that authorized an alternative method of exchanging Venezuelan bolivars to U.S. dollars known as SICAD II. In February 2015, the Venezuelan government announced that it was replacing SICAD II with a new market-based exchange rate determined by the system known as the Sistema Marginal de Divisas, or SIMADI. The SICAD determines the exchange rates based on limited periodic sales of U.S. dollars through auctions in which only entities authorized by the Venezuelan government may participate, while SIMADI determines the exchange rates based on supply and demand of U.S. dollars, in which participation does not require authorization by the Venezuelan government. The SICAD and SIMADI exchange rates in effect as of April 17, 2015, were 12.00 and 196.66 bolivars per US$ 1.00, respectively.

We translated our results of operations in Venezuela for the full year ended December 31, 2014 into our reporting currency, the Mexican peso, using the SICAD II exchange rate of 49.99 bolivars to US$ 1.00, which was the exchange rate in effect as of such date. As a result, we recognized a reduction in equity of Ps. 11,836 million as of December 31, 2014 and as of such date, our foreign direct investment in Venezuela was Ps. 4,015 million. This reduction adversely affected our comprehensive income for the year ended December 31, 2014. In addition, the translation of our Venezuelan results adversely affected our financial results of operation in the amount of Ps. 1,895 million for the year ended December 31, 2014.

Based upon our specific facts and circumstances, we anticipate using the SIMADI exchange rate to translate our future results of operations in Venezuela into our reporting currency, the Mexican peso, commencing with our results for the first quarter of 2015. This translation effect will further adversely affect our comprehensive income and financial position. The Venezuelan government may announce further changes to the exchange rate system in the future. To the extent a higher exchange rate is applied to our investment in Venezuela in future periods as a result of changes to existing regulations, subsequently adopted regulations or otherwise, we could be required to further reduce the amount of our foreign direct investment in Venezuela and our comprehensive income in Venezuela and financial condition could be further adversely affected. More generally, future currency devaluations or the imposition of exchange controls in any of the countries in which we operate may potentially increase our operating costs, which could have an adverse effect on our financial position and comprehensive income.

ITEM 4.

INFORMATION ON THE COMPANY

The Company

Overview

We are a Mexican company headquartered in Monterrey, Mexico, and our origin dates back to 1890. Our company was incorporated on May 30, 1936 and has a duration of 99 years. The duration can be extended indefinitely by resolution of our shareholders. Our legal name is Fomento Económico Mexicano, S.A.B. de C.V., and in commercial contexts we frequently refer to ourselves as FEMSA. Our principal executive offices are located at General Anaya No. 601 Pte., Colonia Bella Vista, Monterrey, Nuevo León 64410, Mexico. Our telephone number at this location is (52-81) 8328-6000. Our website is www.femsa.com. We are organized as a sociedad anónima bursátil de capital variable under the laws of Mexico.

We conduct our operations through the following principal holding companies, each of which we refer to as a principal sub-holding company:

•

Coca-Cola FEMSA, which engages in the production, distribution and marketing of beverages;

•

FEMSA Comercio, which operates small-format stores; and

•

CB Equity, which holds our investment in Heineken.

Corporate Background

FEMSA traces its origins to the establishment of Mexico’s first brewery, Cervecería Cuauhtémoc, S.A., which we refer to as Cuauhtémoc, which was founded in 1890 by four Monterrey businessmen: Francisco G. Sada, José A. Muguerza, Isaac Garza and José M. Schneider. Descendants of certain of the founders of Cuauhtémoc are participants of the voting trust that controls the management of our company.

The strategic integration of our company dates back to 1936 when our packaging operations were established to supply crown caps to the brewery. During this period, these operations were part of what was known as the Monterrey Group, which also included interests in banking, steel and other packaging operations.

In 1974, the Monterrey Group was split between two branches of the descendants of the founding families of Cuauhtémoc. The steel and other packaging operations formed the basis for the creation of Corporación Siderúrgica, S.A. (now Alfa, S.A.B. de C.V.), controlled by the Garza Sada family, and the beverage and banking operations were consolidated under the Valores Industriales, S.A. de C.V. (the corporate predecessor of FEMSA) corporate umbrella controlled by the Garza Lagüera family. FEMSA’s shares were first listed on what is now the Bolsa Mexicana de Valores, S.A.B. de C.V. (which we refer to as the Mexican Stock Exchange) on September 19, 1978. Between 1977 and 1981, FEMSA diversified its operations through acquisitions in the soft drinks and mineral water industries, the establishment of the first stores under the trade name OXXO and other investments in the hotel, construction, auto parts, food and fishing industries, which were considered non-core businesses and were subsequently divested.

In the 1990s, we began a series of strategic transactions to strengthen the competitive positions of our operating subsidiaries. These transactions included the sale of a 30% strategic interest in Coca-Cola FEMSA to a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Coca-Cola Company and a subsequent public offering of Coca-Cola FEMSA shares, both of which occurred in 1993. Coca-Cola FEMSA listed its L shares on the Mexican Stock Exchange and, in the form of ADS, on the New York Stock Exchange.

In 1998, we completed a reorganization that changed our capital structure by converting our outstanding capital stock at the time of the reorganization into BD Units and B Units, and united the shareholders of FEMSA and the former shareholders of Grupo Industrial Emprex, S.A. de C.V. (which we refer to as Emprex) at the same corporate level through an exchange offer that was consummated on May 11, 1998. As part of the reorganization, FEMSA listed ADSs on the NYSE representing BD Units, and listed the BD Units and its B Units on the Mexican Stock Exchange.

In May 2003, our subsidiary Coca-Cola FEMSA expanded its operations throughout Latin America by acquiring 100% of Panamerican Beverages, Inc., which we refer to as Panamco, then the largest soft drink bottler in Latin America in terms of sales volume in 2002. Through its acquisition of Panamco, Coca-Cola FEMSA began producing and distributing Coca-Cola trademark beverages in additional territories in Mexico, Central America, Colombia, Venezuela and Brazil, along with bottled water, beer and other beverages in some of these territories. The Coca-Cola Company and its subsidiaries received Series D Shares in exchange for their equity interest in Panamco of approximately 25%.

In April 2008, FEMSA shareholders approved a proposal to amend our bylaws in order to preserve the unit structure for our shares that has been in place since May 1998, and to maintain our existing share structure beyond May 11, 2008. Our bylaws previously provided that on May 11, 2008 our Series D-B Shares would convert into Series B Shares and our Series D-L Shares would convert into Series L Shares with limited voting rights. In addition, our bylaws provided that, on May 11, 2008, our current unit structure would cease to exist and each of our B Units would be unbundled into five Series B Shares, while each BD Unit would unbundle into three Series B Shares and two newly issued Series L Shares. Following the April 22, 2008 shareholder approvals, the automatic conversion of our share and unit structures no longer exist, and, absent shareholder action, our share structure will continue to be comprised of Series B Shares, which must represent not less than 51% of our outstanding capital stock, and Series D-B and Series D-L Shares, which together may represent up to 49% of our outstanding capital stock. Our Unit structure, absent shareholder action, will continue to consist of B Units, which bundle five Series B Shares, and BD Units, which bundle one Series B Share, two Series D-B Shares and two Series D-L Shares. See “Item 9. The Offer and Listing—Description of Securities.”

In January 2010, FEMSA announced that its Board of Directors unanimously approved a definitive agreement under which FEMSA would exchange its FEMSA Cerveza business for a 20% economic interest in Heineken, one of the world’s leading brewers. In April 2010, FEMSA announced the closing of the transaction, after Heineken N.V., Heineken Holding N.V. and FEMSA held their corresponding AGMs and approved the transaction. Under the terms of the agreement, FEMSA received 43,018,320 shares of Heineken Holding N.V. and 43,009,699 shares of Heineken N.V., with an additional 29,172,504 shares of Heineken N.V. (which shares we refer to as the Allotted Shares) delivered pursuant to an allotted share delivery instrument, or the ASDI. Heineken also assumed US$ 2.1 billion of indebtedness, including FEMSA Cerveza’s unfunded pension obligations. The Allotted Shares were delivered to FEMSA in several installments during 2010 and 2011, with the final installment delivered on October 5, 2011. As of December 31, 2014, FEMSA’s interest in Heineken N.V. represented 12.53% of Heineken N.V.’s outstanding capital and 14.94% of Heineken Holding N.V.’s outstanding capital, resulting in our 20% economic interest in the Heineken Group. The principal terms of the Heineken transaction documents are summarized below in “Item 10. Additional Information—Material Contracts.”

In 2012, Coca-Cola FEMSA began the construction of a production plant in Minas Gerais, Brazil, which was completed and began operations in November 2014. This project required an investment of R$584 million Brazilian reais (equivalent to approximately US$ 260 million). It is expected that the plant will generate approximately 700 direct and indirect jobs. The plant is located on a parcel of land 320,000 square meters in size, and it is expected that by the end of 2015 the annual production capacity will be approximately 1.2 billion liters of sparkling beverages (or approximately 200 million unit cases), representing an increase of approximately 62% as compared to the current installed capacity of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s plant in Belo Horizonte, Brazil.

In May 2012, Coca-Cola FEMSA closed its merger with Grupo Fomento Queretano, with operations mainly in the state of Querétaro, as well as in parts of the states of Mexico, Hidalgo, and Guanajuato.

On September 24, 2012, FEMSA signed definitive agreements to sell its wholly owned subsidiary Industria Mexicana de Quimicos, S.A. de C.V. (which we refer to as Quimiproductos) to a Mexican subsidiary of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE: ECL). Quimiproductos manufactures and provides cleaning and sanitizing products and services related to food and beverage industrial processes, as well as water treatment. The transaction is consistent with FEMSA’s long-standing strategy to divest non-core businesses. Quimiproductos was sold on December 31, 2012, resulting in a gain of Ps. 871 million.

In 2013, Coca-Cola FEMSA began the construction of a production plant in Tocancipá, Colombia, which was completed and began operations in February 2015. This project required an investment of 382 billion Colombian pesos (approximately US$ 194 million). Coca-Cola FEMSA expects that the plant will generate approximately 800 direct and indirect jobs. Certain permits are currently in process of being obtained, and Coca-Cola FEMSA expects to obtain these pending permits during 2015. Coca-Cola FEMSA is currently operating with water provided by the municipality, as an alternative source. The plant is located on a parcel of land 298,000 square meters in size, and it is expected that by the end of 2015, the annual production capacity will be approximately 730 million liters of sparkling beverages (or approximately 130 million unit cases), representing an increase of approximately 24% as compared to the current installed capacity of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s plants in Colombia.

On January 25, 2013, Coca-Cola FEMSA closed the transaction with The Coca-Cola Company to acquire a 51% non-controlling majority stake in CCFPI for US$ 688.5 million (Ps. 8,904 million) in an all-cash transaction. Coca-Cola FEMSA has an option to acquire the remaining 49% stake in CCFPI at any time during the seven years following the closing date. Coca-Cola FEMSA also has a put option to sell its ownership in CCFPI to The Coca-Cola Company commencing on the fifth anniversary of the closing date and ending on the sixth anniversary of the closing date. Coca-Cola FEMSA currently manages the day-to-day operations of the business; however, during a four-year period ending January 25, 2017 the business plan and other operational decisions must be approved jointly with The Coca-Cola Company. Coca-Cola FEMSA currently recognizes the results of CCFPI using the equity method.

In May 2013, Coca-Cola FEMSA closed its merger with Grupo Yoli, one of the oldest family-owned Coca-Cola bottlers in Mexico, operating mainly in the state of Guerrero as well as in parts of the state of Oaxaca.

On May 2, 2013, FEMSA Comercio through one of its subsidiaries, Cadena Comercial de Farmacias, S.A.P.I. de C.V. (which we refer to as CCF), closed the acquisition of Farmacias YZA, a leading drugstore operator in Southeast Mexico, headquartered in Merida, Yucatan. The founding shareholders of Farmacias YZA hold a 25% stake in CCF. In a separate transaction, on May 13, 2013, CCF acquired Farmacias FM Moderna, a leading drugstore operator in the western state of Sinaloa.

In August 2013, Coca-Cola FEMSA closed its acquisition of Companhia Fluminense de Refrigerantes (which we refer to as Companhia Fluminense), a family owned franchise that operates in parts of the states of São Paulo, Minas Gerais and Rio de Janeiro in Brazil. Companhia Fluminense sold approximately 56.6 million unit cases (including beer) in the twelve months ended March 31, 2013.

In October 2013, the Board of Directors agreed to separate the roles of Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, ratifying José Antonio Fernández Carbajal as Executive Chairman of the Board and naming Carlos Salazar Lomelín as the new Chief Executive Officer of FEMSA.

In October 2013, Coca-Cola FEMSA closed its acquisition of Spaipa, the second largest family owned franchise in Brazil, with operations in the state of Paraná and in parts of the state of São Paulo.

In December 2013, FEMSA Comercio, through one of its subsidiaries, purchased the operating assets and trademarks of Doña Tota, a leading quick-service restaurant operator in Mexico. The founding shareholders of Doña Tota hold a 20% stake in the FEMSA Comercio subsidiary that now operates the Doña Tota business.

In December 2014, FEMSA Comercio through CCF, agreed to acquire 100% of Farmacias Farmacón, a regional pharmacy chain consisting of 213 stores in the northwestern Mexican states of Sinaloa, Sonora, Baja California and Baja California Sur. The transaction is pending customary regulatory approvals, and is expected to close during the second quarter of 2015.

For more information on Coca-Cola FEMSA’s recent transactions, see “Item 4. Information on the Company—Coca-Cola FEMSA.”

Ownership Structure

We conduct our business through our principal sub-holding companies as shown in the following diagram and table:

Principal Sub-holding Companies—Ownership Structure

As of March 31, 2015

LOGO

(1)	Compañía Internacional de Bebidas, S.A. de C.V., which we refer to as CIBSA.

(2)	Percentage of issued and outstanding capital stock owned by CIBSA (63.0% of shares with full voting rights).

(3)	Ownership in CB Equity held through various FEMSA subsidiaries.

(4)	Combined economic interest in Heineken N.V. and Heineken Holding N.V.

The following table presents an overview of our operations by reportable segment and by geographic area:

Operations by Segment—Overview

Year Ended December 31, 2014 and % of growth (decrease) vs. last year

(in million of Mexican pesos, except for employees and percentages)


	Coca-Cola FEMSA					FEMSA Comercio				CB Equity⁽¹⁾
Total revenues		Ps. 147,298		(6	%)		Ps. 109,624	12	%		Ps. —	—
Gross Profit		68,382		(6	%)		39,386	14	%		—	—
Share of the (loss) profit of associates and joint ventures accounted for using the equity method, net of taxes		(125	)	(143	%)⁽²⁾		37	236	%		5,244	14	%
Total assets		212,366		(2	%)		43,722	10	%		85,742	4	%
Employees		83,371		(2	%)		110,671	7	%		—	—

(1)	CB Equity holds our Heineken N.V. and Heineken Holding N.V. shares.

(2)	Reflects the percentage decrease between the gain of ps. 289 million recorded in 2013 and the loss of ps. 125 million recorded in 2014.

Total Revenues Summary by Segment⁽¹⁾

Year Ended December 31,

2014

2013

2012

Coca-Cola FEMSA

Ps.147,298

Ps. 156,011

Ps. 147,739

FEMSA Comercio

109,624

97,572

86,433

Other

20,069

17,254

15,899

Consolidated total revenues

Ps. 263,449

Ps. 258,097

Ps. 238,309

(1)	The sum of the financial data for each of our segments and percentages with respect thereto differ from our consolidated financial information due to intercompany transactions, which are eliminated in consolidation, and certain assets and activities of FEMSA.

Total Revenues Summary by Geographic Area⁽¹⁾


	Year Ended December 31,
	2014		2013		2012
Mexico and Central America⁽²⁾		Ps. 186,736		Ps. 171,726		Ps. 155,576
South America⁽³⁾		69,172		55,157		56,444
Venezuela		8,835		31,601		26,800
Consolidated total revenues		263,449		258,097		238,309

(1)	The sum of the financial data for each geographic area differs from our consolidated financial information due to intercompany transactions, which are eliminated in consolidation.

(2)	Central America includes Guatemala, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama. Domestic (Mexico-only) revenues were Ps. 178,125 million, Ps. 163,351 million and Ps. 148,098 million for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012, respectively.

(3)

South America includes Brazil, Colombia and Argentina. South America revenues include Brazilian revenues of Ps. 45,799 million, Ps. 31,138 million and Ps. 30,930 million; Colombian revenues of Ps. 14,207 million, Ps. 13,354 million and Ps. 14,597 million; and Argentine revenues of Ps. 9,714 million, Ps. 10,729 million and Ps. 10,270 million, for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012, respectively.

Significant Subsidiaries

The following table sets forth our significant subsidiaries as of December 31, 2014:


Name of Company	Jurisdiction of Establishment	Percentage Owned
CIBSA:	Mexico		100.0	%
Coca-Cola FEMSA	Mexico		47.9	%⁽¹⁾
Emprex:	Mexico		100.0	%
FEMSA Comercio	Mexico		100.0	%
CB Equity⁽²⁾	United Kingdom		100.0	%

(1)	Percentage of capital stock. FEMSA, through CIBSA, owns 63.0% of the shares of Coca-Cola FEMSA with full voting rights.

(2)	Ownership in CB Equity held through various FEMSA subsidiaries. CB Equity holds our Heineken N.V and Heineken Holding N.V. shares.

Business Strategy

FEMSA is a leading company that participates in the beverage industry through Coca-Cola FEMSA, the largest franchise bottler of Coca-Cola products in the world; and in the beer industry, through its ownership of the second largest equity stake in Heineken, one of the world’s leading brewers with operations in over 70 countries. In the retail industry FEMSA participates with FEMSA Comercio, operating various small-format store chains including OXXO, the largest and fastest-growing in the Americas. Additionally, through its strategic businesses, FEMSA provides logistics, point-of-sale refrigeration solutions and plastics solutions to FEMSA’s business units and third-party clients.

We understand the importance of connecting with our end consumers by interpreting their needs, and ultimately delivering the right products to them for the right occasions and the optimal value proposition. We strive to achieve this by developing brand value, expanding our significant distribution capabilities, and improving the efficiency of our operations while aiming to reach our full potential. We continue to improve our information gathering and processing systems in order to better know and understand what our consumers want and need, and we are improving our production and distribution by more efficiently leveraging our asset base.

We believe that the competencies that our businesses have developed can be replicated in other geographic regions. This underlying principle guided our consolidation efforts, which led to our current continental footprint. We have presence in Mexico, Central and South America and the Philippines including some of the most populous metropolitan areas in Latin America—which has provided us with opportunities to create value through both an improved ability to execute our strategies and the use of superior marketing tools. We have also increased our capabilities to operate and succeed in other geographic regions, by developing management to gain an understanding of local consumer needs. Going forward, we intend to use those capabilities to continue our international expansion of both Coca-Cola FEMSA and FEMSA Comercio, expanding both our geographic footprint and our presence in the non-alcoholic beverage industry and small box retail formats, as well as taking advantage of potential opportunities to leverage our skill set and key competencies.

Our objective is to create economic, social and environmental value for our stakeholders—including our employees, our consumers, our shareholders and the enterprises and institutions within our society—now and into the future.

Coca-Cola FEMSA

Overview

Coca-Cola FEMSA is the largest franchise bottler of Coca-Cola trademark beverages in the world. It operates in territories in the following countries:

•

Mexico – a substantial portion of central Mexico, the southeast and northeast of Mexico (including the Gulf region).

•

Central America – Guatemala (Guatemala City and surrounding areas), Nicaragua (nationwide), Costa Rica (nationwide) and Panama (nationwide).

•

Colombia – most of the country.

•

Venezuela – nationwide.

•

Brazil – a major part of the states of São Paulo and Minas Gerais, the states of Paraná and Mato Grosso do Sul and part of the states of Rio de Janeiro and Goiás.

•

Argentina – Buenos Aires and surrounding areas.

•

Philippines – nationwide (through a joint venture with The Coca-Cola Company).

Coca-Cola FEMSA was incorporated on October 30, 1991 as a stock corporation with variable capital (sociedad anónima de capital variable) under the laws of Mexico for a term of 99 years. On December 5, 2006, as required by amendments to the Mexican Securities Market Law, Coca-Cola FEMSA became a publicly traded stock corporation with variable capital (sociedad anónima bursátil de capital variable). Coca-Cola FEMSA’s legal name is Coca-Cola FEMSA, S.A.B. de C.V. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s principal executive offices are located at Calle Mario Pani No. 100, Colonia Santa Fe Cuajimalpa, Delegación Cuajimalpa de Morelos, 05348, México, D.F., México. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s telephone number at this location is (52-55) 1519-5000. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s website is www.coca-colafemsa.com.

The following is an overview of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s operations by consolidated reporting segment in 2014.

Operations by Consolidated Reporting Segment—Overview

Year Ended December 31, 2014


	Total Revenues (millions of Mexican pesos)		Percentage of Total Revenues			Gross Profit (millions of Mexican pesos)		Percentage of Gross Profit
Mexico and Central America⁽¹⁾		71,965		48.9	%		36,453		53.3	%
South America⁽²⁾ (excluding Venezuela)		66,367		45.0	%		27,372		40.0	%
Venezuela		8,966		6.1	%		4,557		6.7	%

Consolidated		147,298		100.0	%		68,382		100.0	%

(1)	Includes Mexico, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama.

(2)	Includes Colombia, Brazil and Argentina.

Corporate History

Coca-Cola FEMSA commenced operations in 1979, when one of our subsidiaries acquired certain sparkling beverage bottlers. In 1991, we transferred our ownership in the bottlers to FEMSA Refrescos, S.A. de C.V., the corporate predecessor to Coca-Cola FEMSA, S.A.B. de C.V.

In June 1993, a subsidiary of The Coca-Cola Company subscribed for 30% of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s capital stock in the form of Series D shares. In September 1993, we sold Series L shares that represented 19.0% of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s capital stock to the public, and Coca-Cola FEMSA listed these shares on the Mexican Stock Exchange and, in the form of ADSs, on the New York Stock Exchange.

In a series of transactions since 1994, Coca-Cola FEMSA has acquired new territories, brands and other businesses which today comprise Coca-Cola FEMSA’s business. In May 2003, Coca-Cola FEMSA acquired Panamco and began producing and distributing Coca-Cola trademark beverages in additional territories in the central and gulf regions of Mexico and in Central America (Guatemala, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama), Colombia, Venezuela and Brazil, along with bottled water, beer and other beverages in some of these territories.

In November 2006, we acquired 148,000,000 of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Series D shares from certain subsidiaries of The Coca-Cola Company, which increased our ownership of Coca-Cola FEMSA to 53.7%.

In November 2007, Coca-Cola FEMSA acquired together with The Coca-Cola Company 100% of the shares of capital stock of Jugos del Valle, S.A.P.I. de C.V., or Jugos del Valle. In 2008, Coca-Cola FEMSA, The Coca-Cola Company and all Mexican and Brazilian Coca-Cola bottlers entered into a joint business for the Mexican and Brazilian operations, respectively, of Juegos del Valle.

In December 2007 and May 2008, Coca-Cola FEMSA sold most of its proprietary brands to The Coca-Cola Company. The proprietary brands are now being licensed back to Coca-Cola FEMSA by The Coca-Cola Company pursuant to its bottler agreements.

In May 2008, Coca-Cola FEMSA entered into a transaction with The Coca-Cola Company to acquire its wholly owned bottling franchise Refrigerantes Minas Gerais, Ltda., or REMIL, located in the State of Minas Gerais in Brazil.

In July 2008, Coca-Cola FEMSA acquired the Agua De Los Angeles bulk water business in the Valley of Mexico (Mexico City and surrounding areas) from Grupo Embotellador CIMSA, S.A. de C.V., at the time one of the Coca-Cola bottling franchises in Mexico. The trademarks remain with The Coca-Cola Company. Coca-Cola FEMSA subsequently merged Agua De Los Angeles into its bulk water business under the Ciel brand.

In February 2009, Coca-Cola FEMSA together with The Coca-Cola Company acquired the Brisa bottled water business in Colombia from Bavaria, S.A., a subsidiary of SABMiller plc. Coca-Cola FEMSA acquired the production assets and the distribution territory and The Coca-Cola Company acquired the Brisa brand.

In May 2009, Coca-Cola FEMSA entered into an agreement to manufacture, distribute and sell the Crystal trademark water products in Brazil jointly with The Coca-Cola Company.

In August 2010, Coca-Cola FEMSA acquired from The Coca-Cola Company along with other Brazilian Coca-Cola bottlers Leão Alimentos e Bebidas, Ltda. or Leão Alimentos, manufacturer and distributor of the Matte Leão tea brand.

In March 2011, Coca-Cola FEMSA together with The Coca-Cola Company acquired Grupo Industrias Lacteas, S.A. (also known as Estrella Azul), a Panamanian conglomerate that participates in the dairy and juice-based beverage categories in Panama.

In October 2011, Coca-Cola FEMSA merged with Grupo Tampico, one of the largest family-owned Coca-Cola bottlers in Mexico in terms of sales volume with operations in the states of Tamaulipas, San Luis Potosí, and Veracruz, as well as in parts of the states of Hidalgo, Puebla and Queretaro.

In December 2011, Coca-Cola FEMSA merged with Grupo CIMSA and its shareholders, a Mexican family-owned Coca-Cola bottler with operations mainly in the states of Morelos and Mexico, as well as in parts of the states of Guerrero and Michoacán. As part of its merger with Grupo CIMSA, Coca-Cola FEMSA also acquired a 13.2% equity interest in Promotora Industrial Azucarera, S.A de C.V., or PIASA.

In May 2012, Coca-Cola FEMSA merged with Grupo Fomento Queretano, one of the oldest family-owned beverage players in the Coca-Cola system in Mexico, with operations mainly in the state of Querétaro, as well as in parts of the states of Mexico, Hidalgo and Guanajuato. For further information, see Note 4 to our audited consolidated financial statements. As part of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s merger with Grupo Fomento Queretano it also acquired an additional 12.9% equity interest in PIASA.

In August 2012, Coca-Cola FEMSA acquired, through Jugos del Valle, an indirect participation in Santa Clara Mercantil de Pachuca, S.A. de C.V., or Santa Clara, a producer of milk and dairy products in Mexico.

In January 2013, Coca-Cola FEMSA together with The Coca-Cola Company acquired a 51% non- controlling majority stake in CCFPI in an all-cash transaction.

In May 2013, Coca-Cola FEMSA merged with Grupo Yoli, one of the oldest family-owned Coca-Cola bottlers in Mexico, with operations mainly in the state of Guerrero as well as in parts of the state of Oaxaca. For further information, see Note 4 to our audited consolidated financial statements. As part of its merger with Grupo Yoli, Coca-Cola FEMSA also acquired an additional 10.1% equity interest in PIASA for a total ownership of 36.3%.

In August 2013, Coca-Cola FEMSA acquired Companhia Fluminense, a family owned franchise that operates in parts of the states of São Paulo, Minas Gerais and Rio de Janeiro in Brazil. For further information, see Note 4 to our audited consolidated financial statements. As part of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s acquisition of Companhia Fluminense, Coca-Cola FEMSA also acquired an additional 1.2% equity interest in Leão Alimentos.

In October 2013, Coca-Cola FEMSA acquired Spaipa, the second largest family owned franchise in Brazil, with operations in the state of Paraná and in parts of the state of São Paulo. For further information, see Note 4 to our audited consolidated financial statements. As part of its acquisition of Spaipa, Coca-Cola FEMSA also acquired an additional 5.8% equity interest in Leão Alimentos, for a total ownership as of April 10, 2015 of 24.4%, and a 50.0% stake in Fountain Água Mineral Ltda., a joint venture to develop the water category together with The Coca-Cola Company.

For further information see “Item 7. Major Shareholders and Related Party Transactions—Related Party Transactions—Business Transactions between Coca-Cola FEMSA, FEMSA and The Coca-Cola Company.”

Capital Stock

As of April 17, 2015, we indirectly owned Series A shares equal to 47.9% of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s capital stock (63.0% of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s capital stock with full voting rights). As of April 17, 2015, The Coca-Cola Company indirectly owned Series D shares equal to 28.1% of the capital stock of Coca-Cola FEMSA (37.0% of the capital stock with full voting rights). Series L shares with limited voting rights, which trade on the Mexican Stock Exchange and in the form of ADSs on the New York Stock Exchange, constitute the remaining 24.0% of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s capital stock.

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Business Strategy

Coca-Cola FEMSA operates with a large geographic footprint in Latin America. In January 2015, Coca-Cola FEMSA restructured its operations under four new divisions: (1) Mexico (covering certain territories in Mexico); (2) Latin America (covering certain territories in Guatemala, and all of Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama, certain territories in Argentina, most of Colombia and all of Venezuela), (3) Brazil (covering a major part of the states of São Paulo and Minas Gerais, the states of Paraná and Mato Grosso do Sul and part of the states of Rio de Janeiro and Goiás), and (4) Asia (covering all of the Philippines through a joint venture with The Coca-Cola Company). Through these divisions, Coca-Cola FEMSA has created a more flexible structure to execute its strategies and continue with its track record of growth. Coca-Cola FEMSA has also aligned its business strategies more efficiently, ensuring a faster introduction of new products and categories, and a more rapid and effective design and deployment of commercial models.

One of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s goals is to maximize growth and profitability to create value for its shareholders. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s efforts to achieve this goal are based on: (1) transforming its commercial models to focus on its customers’ value potential and using a value-based segmentation approach to capture the industry’s value potential; (2) implementing multi-segmentation strategies in its major markets to target distinct market clusters divided by consumption occasion, competitive intensity and socioeconomic levels; (3) implementing well-planned product, packaging and pricing strategies through different distribution channels; (4) driving product innovation along its different product categories; (5) developing new businesses and distribution channels; and (6) achieving the full operating potential of its commercial models and processes to drive operational efficiencies throughout its company. In furtherance of these efforts, Coca-Cola FEMSA intends to continue to focus on, among other initiatives, the following:

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working with The Coca-Cola Company to develop a business model to continue exploring and participating in new lines of beverages, extending existing product lines and effectively advertising and marketing its products;

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developing and expanding its still beverage portfolio through innovation, strategic acquisitions and by entering into agreements to acquire companies with The Coca-Cola Company;

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expanding its bottled water strategy with The Coca-Cola Company through innovation and selective acquisitions to maximize profitability across its market territories;

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strengthening its selling capabilities and go-to-market strategies, including pre-sale, conventional selling and hybrid routes, in order to get closer to its clients and help them satisfy the beverage needs of consumers;

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implementing selective packaging strategies designed to increase consumer demand for its products and to build a strong returnable base for the Coca-Cola brand;

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replicating its best practices throughout the value chain;

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rationalizing and adapting its organizational and asset structure in order to be in a better position to respond to a changing competitive environment;

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building a multi-cultural collaborative team, from top to bottom; and

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broadening its geographic footprint through organic growth and strategic joint ventures, mergers and acquisitions.

Coca-Cola FEMSA seeks to increase per capita consumption of its products in the territories in which it operates. To that end, Coca-Cola FEMSA’s marketing teams continuously develop sales strategies tailored to the different characteristics of its various territories and distribution channels. Coca-Cola FEMSA continues to develop its product portfolio to better meet market demand and maintain its overall profitability. To stimulate and respond to consumer demand, Coca-Cola FEMSA continues to introduce new categories, products and presentations. See “—Product and Packaging Mix.” In addition, because Coca-Cola FEMSA views its relationship with The Coca-Cola Company as integral to its business, Coca-Cola FEMSA uses market information systems and strategies developed with The Coca-Cola Company to improve its business and marketing strategies. See “—Marketing.”

Coca-Cola FEMSA also continuously seeks to increase productivity in its facilities through infrastructure and process reengineering for improved asset utilization. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s capital expenditure program includes investments in production and distribution facilities, bottles, cases, coolers and information systems. Coca-Cola FEMSA believes that this program will allow it to maintain its capacity and flexibility to innovate and to respond to consumer demand for its products.

In early 2015, Coca-Cola FEMSA redesigned its corporate structure to strengthen the core functions of its organization. Through this restructuring, Coca-Cola FEMSA created specialized departments, focused on its supply chain, commercial, and IT innovation areas (centros de excelencia). These departments not only enable centralized collaboration and knowledge sharing, but also drive standards of excellence and best practices in Coca-Cola FEMSA’s key strategic capabilities. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s priorities include enhanced manufacturing efficiency, improved distribution and logistics, and cutting-edge IT-enabled commercial innovation.

Coca-Cola FEMSA focuses on management quality as a key element of its growth strategy and remains committed to fostering the development of quality management at all levels. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Strategic Talent Management Model is designed to enable it to reach its full potential by developing the capabilities of its employees and executives. This holistic model works to build the skills necessary for Coca-Cola FEMSA’s employees and executives to reach their maximum potential, while contributing to the achievement of its short- and long-term objectives. To support this capability development model, Coca-Cola FEMSA’s board of directors has allocated a portion of its yearly operating budget to fund these management training programs.

Sustainable development is a comprehensive part of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s strategic framework for business operation and growth. Coca-Cola FEMSA bases its efforts in its core foundation, its ethics and values. Coca-Cola FEMSA focuses on three core areas, (i) its people, by encouraging the comprehensive development of its employees and their families; (ii) its communities, by promoting the generation of sustainable communities in which it serves, an attitude of health, self-care, adequate nutrition and physical activity, and evaluating the impact of its value chain; and (iii) the planet, by establishing guidelines that it believes will result in efficient use of natural resources to minimize the impact that its operations might have on the environment and create a broader awareness of caring for the environment.

CCFPI Joint Venture

On January 25, 2013, as part of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s efforts to expand its geographic reach, it acquired a 51% non-controlling majority stake in CCFPI. Coca-Cola FEMSA currently manages the day-to-day operations of the business; however, during a four-year period ending January 25, 2017 the business plan and other operational decisions must be approved jointly with The Coca-Cola Company. As of December 31, 2014, Coca-Cola FEMSA’s investment under the equity method in CCFPI was Ps. 9,021 million. See Notes 10 and 26 to our audited consolidated financial statements. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s product portfolio in the Philippines consists of Coca-Cola trademark beverages and Coca-Cola FEMSA’s total sales volume in 2014 reached 513 million unit cases. The operations of CCFPI are comprised of 19 production plants and serve close to 853,242 customers.

The Philippines has one of the highest per capita consumption rates of Coca-Cola products in the region and presents significant opportunities for further growth. Coca-Cola has been present in the Philippines since the start of the 20th century and since 1912 it has been locally producing Coca-Cola products. The Philippines received the first Coca-Cola bottling and distribution franchise in Asia. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s strategic framework for growth in the Philippines is based on three pillars: portfolio, route to market and supply chain.

Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Territories

The following map shows Coca-Cola FEMSA’s territories, giving estimates in each case of the population to which it offer products, the number of retailers of its beverages and the per capita consumption of its beverages as of December 31, 2014:

LOGO

Per capita consumption data for a territory is determined by dividing total beverage sales volume within the territory (in unit cases) by the estimated population within such territory, and is expressed on the basis of the number of eight-ounce servings of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s products consumed annually per capita. In evaluating the development of local volume sales in Coca-Cola FEMSA’s territories and to determine product potential, Coca-Cola FEMSA and The Coca-Cola Company measure, among other factors, the per capita consumption of all their beverages.

Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Products

Coca-Cola FEMSA produces, markets, sells and distributes Coca-Cola trademark beverages. The Coca-Cola trademark beverages include: sparkling beverages (colas and flavored sparkling beverages), waters and still beverages (including juice drinks, coffee, teas, milk, value-added dairy and isotonic drinks). The following table sets forth Coca-Cola FEMSA’s main brands as of December 31, 2014:


*Colas:*	Mexico and Central America⁽¹⁾	South America⁽²⁾	Venezuela
Coca-Cola	ü	ü	ü
Coca-Cola Light	ü	ü	ü
Coca-Cola Zero	ü	ü
Coca-Cola Life	ü	ü

*Flavored sparkling beverages:*	Mexico and Central America⁽¹⁾	South America⁽²⁾	Venezuela
Ameyal	ü
Canada Dry	ü
Chinotto			ü
Crush		ü
Escuis	ü
Fanta	ü	ü
Fresca	ü
Frescolita	ü		ü
Hit			ü
Kist	ü
Kuat		ü
Lift	ü
Mundet	ü
Quatro		ü
Schweppes	ü	ü	ü
Simba		ü
Sprite	ü	ü
Victoria	ü
Yoli	ü

*Water:*	Mexico and Central America⁽¹⁾	South America⁽²⁾	Venezuela
Alpina	ü
Aquarius⁽³⁾		ü
Bonaqua		ü
Brisa		ü
Ciel	ü
Crystal		ü
Dasani	ü
Manantial		ü
Nevada			ü

*Other Categories:*	Mexico and Central America⁽¹⁾	South America⁽²⁾	Venezuela
Cepita⁽⁴⁾		ü
Del Prado⁽⁵⁾	ü
Estrella Azul⁽⁶⁾	ü
FUZE Tea	ü		ü
Hi-C⁽⁷⁾	ü	ü
Santa Clara⁽⁸⁾	ü
Jugos del Valle⁽⁴⁾	ü	ü	ü
Matte Leão⁽⁹⁾		ü
Powerade⁽¹⁰⁾	ü	ü	ü
Valle Frut⁽¹¹⁾	ü	ü	ü

(1)	Includes Mexico, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama.

(2)	Includes Colombia, Brazil and Argentina.

(3)	Flavored water. In Brazil, also a flavored sparkling beverage.

(4)	Juice-based beverage.

(5)	Juice-based beverage in Central America.

(6)	Milk and value-added dairy and juices.

(7)	Juice-based beverage. Includes Hi-C Orangeade in Argentina.

(8)	Milk, value-added dairy and coffee.

(9)	Ready to drink tea.

(10)	Isotonic drinks.

(11)	Orangeade. Includes Del Valle Fresh in Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Panama, Colombia and Venezuela.

Sales Overview

Coca-Cola FEMSA measures total sales volume in terms of unit cases. “Unit case” refers to 192 ounces of finished beverage product (24 eight-ounce servings) and, when applied to soda fountains, refers to the volume of syrup, powders and concentrate that is required to produce 192 ounces of finished beverage product. The following table illustrates Coca-Cola FEMSA’s historical sales volume for each of its consolidated territories.


	Year Ended December 31,
	2014		2013⁽¹⁾		2012⁽²⁾
	(millions of unit cases)
Mexico and Central America
Mexico		1,754.9		1,798.0		1,720.3
Central America⁽³⁾		163.6		155.6		151.2
South America (excluding Venezuela)
Colombia		298.4		275.7		255.8
Brazil⁽⁴⁾		733.5		525.2		494.2
Argentina		225.8		227.1		217.0
Venezuela		241.1		222.9		207.7

Consolidated Volume		3,417.3		3,204.5		3,046.2

(1)	Includes volume from the operations of Grupo Yoli from June 2013, Companhia Fluminense from September 2013 and Spaipa from November 2013.

(2)	Includes volume from the operations of Grupo Fomento Queretano from May 2012.

(3)	Includes Guatemala, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama.

(4)	Excludes beer sales volume.

Product and Packaging Mix

Out of the more than 116 brands and line extensions of beverages that Coca-Cola FEMSA sells and distributes, Coca-Cola FEMSA’s most important brand, Coca-Cola, together with its line extensions, Coca-Cola Light, Coca-Cola Life and Coca-Cola Zero, accounted for 61.0% of total sales volume in 2014. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s next largest brands, Ciel (a water brand from Mexico and its line extensions), Fanta (and its line extensions), Sprite (and its line extensions) and ValleFrut (and its line extensions) accounted for 11.6%, 5.1%, 2.8% and 2.7%, respectively, of total sales volume in 2014. Coca-Cola FEMSA uses the term line extensions to refer to the different flavors in which it offers its brands. Coca-Cola FEMSA produces, markets, sells and distributes Coca-Cola trademark beverages in each of its territories in containers authorized by The Coca-Cola Company, which consist of a variety of returnable and non-returnable presentations in the form of glass bottles, cans and plastic bottles mainly made of polyethylene terephthalate, which we refer to as PET.

Coca-Cola FEMSA uses the term presentation to refer to the packaging unit in which it sells its products. Presentation sizes for Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Coca-Cola trademark beverages range from a 6.5-ounce personal size to a 3-liter multiple serving size. For all of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s products excluding water, Coca-Cola FEMSA considers a multiple serving size as equal to, or larger than, 1.0 liter. In general, personal sizes have a higher price per unit case as compared to multiple serving sizes. Coca-Cola FEMSA offers both returnable and non-returnable

presentations, which allow it to offer portfolio alternatives based on convenience and affordability to implement revenue management strategies and to target specific distribution channels and population segments in its territories. In addition, Coca-Cola FEMSA sells some Coca-Cola trademark beverage syrups in containers designed for soda fountain use, which we refer to as fountain. Coca-Cola FEMSA also sells bottled water products in bulk sizes, which refer to presentations equal to or larger than 5.0 liters, which have a much lower average price per unit case than its other beverage products.

The characteristics of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s territories are very diverse. Central Mexico and Coca-Cola FEMSA’s territories in Argentina are densely populated and have a large number of competing beverage brands as compared to the rest of its territories. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s territories in Brazil are densely populated but have lower per capita consumption of beverage products as compared to Mexico. Portions of southern Mexico, Central America and Colombia are large and mountainous areas with lower population density, lower per capita income and lower per capita consumption of beverages. In Venezuela, Coca-Cola FEMSA faces operational disruptions from time to time, which may have an effect on its volumes sold, and consequently, may result in lower per capita consumption.

The following discussion analyzes Coca-Cola FEMSA’s product and packaging mix by its consolidated reporting segments. The volume data presented is for the years 2014, 2013 and 2012.

Mexico and Central America. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s product portfolio consists of Coca-Cola trademark beverages, including the Jugos del Valle line of juice-based beverages. Per capita consumption of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s beverage products in Mexico and Central America was 607.5 and 189.1 eight-ounce servings, respectively, in 2014.

The following table highlights historical sales volume and mix in Mexico and Central America for Coca-Cola FEMSA’s products:


	Year Ended December 31,
	2014			2013⁽¹⁾		2012⁽²⁾
Total Sales Volume
Total (millions of unit cases)		1,918.5			1,953.6		1,871.5
Growth (%)		(1.8	)		4.4		23.9

	(in percentages)
Unit Case Volume Mix by Category
Sparkling beverages		73.2			73.1		73.0
Water⁽³⁾		21.3			21.2		21.4
Still beverages		5.5			5.7		5.6

Total		100.0			100.0		100.0

(1)	Includes volume from the operations of Grupo Yoli from June 2013.

(2)	Includes volume from the operations of Grupo Fomento Queretano from May 2012.

(3)	Includes bulk water volumes.

In 2014, multiple serving presentations represented 64.5% of total sparkling beverages sales volume in Mexico, a 170 basis points decrease compared to 2013; and 54.7% of total sparkling beverages sales volume in Central America, a 16 basis points decrease compared to 2013. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s strategy is to foster consumption of single serve presentations while maintaining multiple serving volumes. In 2014, returnable packaging, as a percentage of total sparkling beverage sales volume accounted for 37.9% in Mexico, a 290 basis points increase as compared to 2013; and 34.8% in Central America, a 1,160 basis points increase as compared to 2013.

In 2014, Coca-Cola FEMSA’s sparkling beverages volume as a percentage of total sales volume in its Mexico and Central America division increased marginally to 73.2% as compared with 2013.

Total sales volume in Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Mexico and Central America division (including Grupo Yoli) reached 1,918.5 million unit cases in 2014, a decrease of 1.8% compared to 1,953.6 million unit cases in 2013. The sales volume for Coca-Cola FEMSA’s sparkling beverage category decreased 1.6%, mainly driven by the impact of price increase to compensate the excise tax to sweetened beverages. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s bottled water portfolio, excluding bulk water, grew 4.2%, mainly driven by the performance of the Ciel brand in Mexico. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s still beverage category decreased 5.5% mainly due to the performance of the Jugos del Valle portfolio in the division. Organically, excluding the non-comparable effect of Grupo Yoli in 2014, total sales volume for Mexico and Central America division reached 1,878.9 million unit cases in 2014, a decrease of 3.8% as compared to 2013. On the same basis, Coca-Cola FEMSA’s sparkling beverage category decreased 3.9%, its bottled water portfolio, excluding bulk water, remained flat, and its still beverage category decreased 7.1%.

In 2013, multiple serving presentations represented 66.2% of total sparkling beverages sales volume in Mexico (including Grupo Fomento Queretano and Grupo Yoli), a 10 basis points decrease compared to 2012; and 56.3% of total sparkling beverages sales volume in Central America, a 50 basis points increase compared to 2012. In 2013, returnable packaging, as a percentage of total sparkling beverage sales volume, accounted for 35.0% in Mexico (including Grupo Fomento Queretano and Grupo Yoli), a 160 basis points increase compared to 2012; and 23.2% in Central America, a 160 basis points decrease compared to 2012.

In 2013, Coca-Cola FEMSA’s sparkling beverages volume as a percentage of total sales volume in its Mexico and Central America division (including Grupo Fomento Queretano and Grupo Yoli) increased marginally to 73.1% as compared with 2012.

Total sales volume in Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Mexico and Central America division (including Grupo Fomento Queretano and Grupo Yoli) reached 1,953.6 million unit cases in 2013, an increase of 4.4% compared to 1,871.5 million unit cases in 2012. The integration of Grupo Fomento Queretano and Grupo Yoli in Mexico contributed 89.3 million unit cases in 2013 of which sparkling beverages were 72.2%, water was 9.9%, bulk water was 13.4% and still beverages were 4.5%. Excluding the integration of these territories, volume decreased 0.4% to 1,864.2 million unit cases. Organically, Coca-Cola FEMSA’s bottled water portfolio grew 5.1%, mainly driven by the performance of the Ciel brand in Mexico. On the same basis, Coca-Cola FEMSA’s still beverage category grew 3.7% mainly due to the performance of the Jugos del Valle portfolio in the division. These increases partially compensated for the flat volumes in sparkling beverages and a 3.5% decline in the bulk water business.

South America (Excluding Venezuela). Coca-Cola FEMSA’s product portfolio in South America consists mainly of Coca-Cola trademark beverages, including the Jugos del Valle line of juice-based beverages in Colombia and Brazil, and the Heineken beer brands, including Kaiser beer brands, in Brazil, which we sell and distribute.

During 2013, as part of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s efforts to foster sparkling beverage per capita consumption in Brazil, it reinforced the 2.0-liter returnable plastic bottle for the Coca-Cola brand and introduced two single-serve 0.2 and 0.3 liter presentations. During 2014, in an effort to increase sales in its still beverage portfolio in the region, Coca-Cola FEMSA reinforced its Jugos del Valle line of business and Powerade brand. Per capita consumption of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s beverages in Colombia, Brazil and Argentina was 152.7, 244.2 and 470.4 eight-ounce servings, respectively, in 2014.

The following table highlights historical total sales volume and sales volume mix in South America (excluding Venezuela), not including beer:


	Year Ended December 31,
	2014		2013⁽¹⁾		2012
Total Sales Volume
Total (millions of unit cases)		1,257.7		1,028.1		967.0
Growth (%)		22.6		6.3		2.0

	(in percentages)
Unit Case Volume Mix by Category
Sparkling beverages		84.1		84.1		84.9
Water⁽²⁾		9.7		10.1		10.0
Still beverages		6.2		5.8		5.1

Total		100.0		100.0		100.0

(1)	Includes volume from the operations of Companhia Fluminense from September 2013 and Spaipa from November 2013.

(2)	Includes bulk water volume.

Total sales volume in Coca-Cola FEMSA’s South America division, excluding Venezuela, increased 22.6% to 1,257.7 million unit cases in 2014 as compared to 2013, as a result of stronger sales volumes in its recently integrated territories in Brazil and better volume performance in Colombia. The still beverage category grew 31.8%, mainly driven by the Jugos del Valle line of business in Colombia and Brazil and the performance of FUZE tea and Leão tea in the division. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s sparkling portfolio increased 22.6% mainly driven by the performance of the Coca-Cola brand and other core products in its operations. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s bottled water portfolio, including bulk water, increased 16.9% driven by performance of the Bonaqua brand in Argentina and the Crystal brand in Brazil. Organically, excluding the non-comparable effect of Companhia Fluminense and Spaipa in 2014, total sales volume in South America division excluding Venezuela, increased 3.7% as compared to 2013. On the same basis, Coca-Cola FEMSA’s still beverage category grew 15.3% mainly driven by the Jugos del Valle line of business in the region, its bottled water portfolio, including bulk water, increased 6.9% mainly driven by the performance of the Crystal brand in Brazil, and its sparkling beverage category increased 2.5%.

In 2014, returnable packaging, as a percentage of total sparkling beverage sales volume, accounted for 32.0% in Colombia, a decrease of 520 basis points as compared to 2013; 19.7% in Argentina, a decrease of 230 basis points and 15.5% in Brazil a 50 basis points decrease compared to 2013. In 2014, multiple serving presentations represented 69.8%, 85.3% and 75.0% of total sparkling beverages sales volume in Colombia, Argentina and Brazil, respectively.

Total sales volume in Coca-Cola FEMSA’s South America division, excluding Venezuela, increased 6.3% to 1,028.1 million unit cases in 2013 as compared to 2012, as a result of growth in Colombia and Argentina and the integration of Companhia Fluminense and Spaipa in its Brazilian territories. These effects compensated for an organic volume decline in Brazil. Organically, excluding the non-comparable effect of Companhia Fluminense and Spaipa, volumes remained flat as compared with the previous year. On the same basis, the still beverage category grew 14.3%, mainly driven by the Jugos del Valle line of business in Colombia and Brazil and the performance of FUZE tea in the division. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s bottled water portfolio, including bulk water, increased 3.8% mainly driven by the Bonaqua brand in Argentina and the Brisa brand in Colombia. These increases compensated for a 1.2% decline in the sparkling beverage portfolio.

In 2013, returnable packaging, as a percentage of total sparkling beverage sales volume, accounted for 37.2% in Colombia, a decrease of 320 basis points as compared to 2012; 22.0% in Argentina, a decrease of 690 basis points and 16.0% in Brazil, excluding the non-comparable effect of Companhia Fluminense and Spaipa, a 170 basis points increase compared to 2012. In 2013, multiple serving presentations represented 66.7%, 85.2% and 72.9% of total sparkling beverages sales volume in Colombia, Argentina and Brazil on an organic basis, respectively.

Coca-Cola FEMSA continues to distribute and sell the Heineken beer portfolio, including Kaiser beer brands, in its Brazilian territories through the 20-year term, consistent with the arrangements in place since 2006 with Cervejarias Kaiser, a subsidiary of the Heineken Group. Beginning in the second quarter of 2005, Coca-Cola FEMSA ceased including beer that it distributes in Brazil in its reported sales volumes.

Venezuela. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s product portfolio in Venezuela consists of Coca-Cola trademark beverages. Per capita consumption of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s beverages in Venezuela during 2014 was 190.0 eight-ounce servings. At the end of 2011, Coca-Cola FEMSA launched Del Valle Fresh, an orangeade, in Venezuela, which contributed significantly to incremental volume growth in this country during 2012. During 2014, Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Powerade brand in the country contributed to its sales growth in the still beverage category.

The following table highlights historical total sales volume and sales volume mix in Venezuela:


	Year Ended December 31,
	2014		2013		2012
Total Sales Volume
Total (millions of unit cases)		241.1		222.9		207.7
Growth (%)		8.2		7.3		9.4

	(in percentages)
Unit Case Volume Mix by Category
Sparkling beverages		85.7		85.6		87.9
Water⁽¹⁾		6.5		6.9		5.6
Still beverages		7.8		7.5		6.5

Total		100.0		100.0		100.0

(1)	Includes bulk water volume.

Coca-Cola FEMSA has implemented a product portfolio rationalization strategy that allows it to minimize the impact of certain operating disruptions that have been recurrent in Venezuela over the last several years related to difficulties in accessing raw materials due to the delay in obtaining the corresponding import authorizations. In addition, from time to time, Coca-Cola FEMSA experiences operating disruptions due to prolonged negotiations of collective bargaining agreements.

Despite these difficulties, total sales volume increased 8.2% to 241.1 million unit cases in 2014, as compared to 222.9 million unit cases in 2013. The sales volume in the sparkling beverage category grew 8.3%, driven by the strong performance of the Coca-Cola brand, which grew 15.3%. The bottled water business, including bulk water, grew 1.6% mainly driven by the Nevada brand. The still beverage category increased 10.8%, due to the performance of the Del Valle Fresh orangeade and Powerade brand.

In 2014, multiple serving presentations represented 81.9% of total sparkling beverages sales volume in Venezuela, a 100 basis points increase as compared to 2013. In 2014, returnable presentations represented 6.9% of total sparkling beverages sales volume in Venezuela, a 20 basis points increase as compared to 2013.

Total sales volume increased 7.3% to 222.9 million unit cases in 2013, as compared to 207.7 million unit cases in 2012. The sales volume in the sparkling beverage category grew 4.5%, driven by the strong performance of the Coca-Cola brand, which grew 10.0%. The bottled water business, including bulk water, grew 33.2% mainly driven by the Nevada brand. The still beverage category increased 23.5%, due to the performance of the Del Valle Fresh orangeade and Kapo.

In 2013, multiple serving presentations represented 80.9% of total sparkling beverages sales volume in Venezuela, a 100 basis points increase compared to 2012. In 2013, returnable presentations represented 6.8% of total sparkling beverages sales volume in Venezuela, an 80 basis points decrease compared to 2012.

Seasonality

Sales of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s products are seasonal, as its sales levels generally increase during the summer months of each country and during the Christmas holiday season. In Mexico, Central America, Colombia and Venezuela, Coca-Cola FEMSA typically achieves its highest sales during the summer months of April through September as well as during the Christmas holidays in December. In Brazil and Argentina, Coca-Cola FEMSA’s highest sales levels occur during the summer months of October through March and the Christmas holidays in December.

Marketing

Coca-Cola FEMSA, in conjunction with The Coca-Cola Company, has developed a marketing strategy to promote the sale and consumption of its products. Coca-Cola FEMSA relies extensively on advertising, sales promotions and retailer support programs to target the particular preferences of its consumers. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s consolidated marketing expenses in 2014, net of contributions by The Coca-Cola Company, were Ps. 3,488 million. The Coca-Cola Company contributed an additional Ps. 4,118 million in 2014, which mainly includes contributions for coolers, bottles and cases. Through the use of advanced information technology, Coca-Cola FEMSA has collected customer and consumer information that allow it to tailor its marketing strategies to target different types of customers located in each of its territories and to meet the specific needs of the various markets it serves.

Retailer Support Programs. Support programs include providing retailers with point-of-sale display materials and consumer sales promotions, such as contests, sweepstakes and the giveaway of product samples.

Coolers. Coolers play an integral role in Coca-Cola FEMSA’s clients’ plans for success. Increasing both cooler coverage and the number of cooler doors among its retailers is important to ensure that Coca-Cola FEMSA’s wide variety of products are properly displayed, while strengthening its merchandising capacity in the traditional sales channel to significantly improve its point-of-sale execution.

Advertising. Coca-Cola FEMSA advertises in all major communications media. Coca-Cola FEMSA focuses its advertising efforts on increasing brand recognition by consumers and improving its customer relations. National advertising campaigns are designed and proposed by The Coca-Cola Company’s local affiliates in the countries in which Coca-Cola FEMSA operates, with Coca-Cola FEMSA’s input at the local or regional level. Point-of-sale merchandising and advertising efforts are proposed and implemented by Coca-Cola FEMSA, with a focus on increasing its connection with customers and consumers.

Channel Marketing. In order to provide more dynamic and specialized marketing of its products, Coca-Cola FEMSA’s strategy is to classify its markets and develop targeted efforts for each consumer segment or distribution channel. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s principal channels are small retailers, “on-premise” consumption such as restaurants and bars, supermarkets and third party distributors. Presence in these channels entails a comprehensive and detailed analysis of the purchasing patterns and preferences of various groups of beverage consumers in each of the different types of locations or distribution channels. In response to this analysis, Coca-Cola FEMSA tailors its product, price, packaging and distribution strategies to meet the particular needs of and exploit the potential of each channel.

Multi-Segmentation. Coca-Cola FEMSA has implemented a multi-segmentation strategy in all of its markets. These strategies consist of the implementation of different product/price/package portfolios by market cluster or group. These clusters are defined based on consumption occasion, competitive intensity and socio-economic levels, rather than solely on the types of distribution channels.

Client Value Management. Coca-Cola FEMSA continues transforming its commercial models to focus on its customers’ value potential using a value-based segmentation approach to capture the industry’s potential. Coca-Cola FEMSA started the rollout of this new model in its Mexico, Central America, Colombia and Brazil operations in 2009. As of the end of 2014, Coca-Cola FEMSA has covered the totality of the volumes in every operation except for Venezuela (where Coca-Cola FEMSA has partially covered the volumes) and the recently integrated franchises of Companhia Fluminense and Spaipa in Brazil.

Coca-Cola FEMSA believes that the implementation of these strategies described above also enables it to respond to competitive initiatives with channel-specific responses as opposed to market-wide responses. In addition, it allows Coca-Cola FEMSA to be more efficient in the way it goes to market and invests its marketing resources in those segments that could provide a higher return. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s marketing, segmentation and distribution activities are facilitated by its management information systems. Coca-Cola FEMSA has invested significantly in creating these systems, including in hand-held computers to support the gathering of product, consumer and delivery information for most of the sales routes throughout its territories.

Product Sales and Distribution

The following table provides an overview of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s distribution centers and the retailers to which it sells its products:


	As of December 31, 2014
	Mexico and Central America⁽¹⁾		South America⁽²⁾		Venezuela
Distribution centers		176		66		33
Retailers⁽³⁾		955,383		814,864		181,605

(1)	Includes Mexico, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama.

(2)	Includes Colombia, Brazil and Argentina.

(3)	Estimated.

Coca-Cola FEMSA continuously evaluates its distribution model in order to fit with the local dynamics of the marketplace and analyze the way it goes to market, recognizing different service needs from its customers, while looking for a more efficient distribution model. As part of this strategy, Coca-Cola FEMSA is rolling out a variety of new distribution models throughout its territories looking for improvements in its distribution network.

Coca-Cola FEMSA uses several sales and distribution models depending on market, geographic conditions and the customer’s profile: (1) the pre-sale system, which separates the sales and delivery functions, permitting trucks to be loaded with the mix of products that retailers have previously ordered, thereby increasing both sales and distribution efficiency, (2) the conventional truck route system, in which the person in charge of the delivery makes immediate sales from inventory available on the truck, (3) a hybrid distribution system, where the same truck carries product available for immediate sale and product previously ordered through the pre-sale system, (4) the telemarketing system, which could be combined with pre-sales visits and (5) sales through third-party wholesalers of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s products.

As part of the pre-sale system, sales personnel also provide merchandising services during retailer visits, which Coca-Cola FEMSA believes enhance the shopper experience at the point of sale. Coca-Cola FEMSA believes that an adequate number of service visits to retailers and frequency of deliveries are essential elements in an effective selling and distribution system for its products.

Coca-Cola FEMSA’s distribution centers range from large warehousing facilities and re-loading centers to small deposit centers. In addition to Coca-Cola FEMSA’s fleet of trucks, Coca-Cola FEMSA distributes its products in certain locations through electric carts and hand-trucks in order to comply with local environmental and traffic regulations. In some of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s territories, it retains third parties to transport its finished products from the bottling plants to the distribution centers.

Mexico. Coca-Cola FEMSA contracts with one of our subsidiaries for the transportation of finished products to its distribution centers from its production facilities. From the distribution centers, Coca-Cola FEMSA then distributes its finished products to retailers through its own fleet of trucks.

In Mexico, Coca-Cola FEMSA sells a majority of its beverages at small retail stores to consumers who may take the beverages for consumption at home or elsewhere. Coca-Cola FEMSA also sells products through the “on-premise” consumption segment, supermarkets and other locations. The “on-premise” consumption segment consists of sales through sidewalk stands, restaurants, bars and various types of dispensing machines as well as sales through point-of-sale programs in stadiums, concert halls, auditoriums and theaters.

Brazil. In Brazil, Coca-Cola FEMSA sold 33% of its total sales volume through modern distribution channels in 2014. Also in Brazil, Coca-Cola FEMSA distributes its finished products to retailers through a combination of its own fleet of trucks and third party distributors, while Coca-Cola FEMSA maintains control over the selling function. In designated zones in Brazil, third-party distributors purchase its products at a discount from the wholesale price and resell the products to retailers.

Territories other than Mexico and Brazil. Coca-Cola FEMSA distributes its finished products to retailers through a combination of its own fleet of trucks and third party distributors. In most of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s territories, an important part of its total sales volume is sold through small retailers, with low supermarket penetration.

Competition

Although Coca-Cola FEMSA believes that its products enjoy wider recognition and greater consumer loyalty than those of its principal competitors, the markets in the territories in which Coca-Cola FEMSA operates are highly competitive. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s principal competitors are local Pepsi bottlers and other bottlers and distributors of national and regional beverage brands. Coca-Cola FEMSA faces increased competition in many of its territories from producers of low price beverages, commonly referred to as “B brands.” A number of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s competitors in Central America, Venezuela, Brazil and Argentina offer beer in addition to sparkling beverages, still beverages, and water, which may enable them to achieve distribution efficiencies.

Price discounting and packaging have joined consumer sales promotions, customer service and non-price retailer incentives as the primary means of competition among bottlers. Coca-Cola FEMSA competes by seeking to offer products at an attractive price in the different segments in its markets and by building on the value of its brands. Coca-Cola FEMSA believes that the introduction of new products and new presentations has been a significant competitive technique that allows it to increase demand for its products, provide different options to consumers and increase new consumption opportunities. See “—Product and Packaging Mix.”

Mexico and Central America. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s principal competitors in Mexico are bottlers of Pepsi products, whose territories overlap but are not co-extensive with its own. Coca-Cola FEMSA competes with Organización Cultiba, S.A.B. de C.V., a joint venture formed by Grupo Embotelladoras Unidas, S.A.B. de C.V., the former Pepsi bottler in central and southeast Mexico, a subsidiary of PepsiCo, and Empresas Polar, S.A., the leading beer distributor and Pepsi bottler in Venezuela. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s main competition in the juice category in Mexico is Grupo Jumex. In the water category, Bonafont, a water brand owned by Grupo Danone, is Coca-Cola FEMSA’s main competition. In addition, Coca-Cola FEMSA competes with Cadbury Schweppes in sparkling beverages and with other national and regional brands in its Mexican territories, as well as “B brand” producers, such as Ajemex, S.A. de C.V. and Consorcio AGA, S.A. de C.V., that offer various presentations of sparkling and still beverages.

In the countries that comprise Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Central America region, its main competitors are Pepsi and Big Cola bottlers. In Guatemala and Nicaragua, Coca-Cola FEMSA competes with a joint venture between AmBev and The Central American Bottler Corporation. In Costa Rica, Coca-Cola FEMSA’s principal competitor is Florida Bebidas S.A., subsidiary of Florida Ice and Farm Co. In Panama, Coca-Cola FEMSA’s main competitor is Cervecería Nacional, S.A. Coca-Cola FEMSA also faces competition from “B brands” offering multiple serving size presentations in some Central American countries.

South America (excluding Venezuela). Coca-Cola FEMSA’s principal competitor in Colombia is Postobón, a well-established local bottler that sells flavored sparkling beverages (under the brands Postobón and Colombiana), some of which have a wide consumption preference, such as manzana Postobón (apple Postobón), which is the second most popular flavor in the Colombian sparkling beverage industry in terms of total sales volume. Postobón also sells Pepsi products. Postobón is a vertically integrated producer, the owners of which hold other significant commercial interests in Colombia. Coca-Cola FEMSA also competes with low-price producers, such as the producers of Big Cola, which principally offer multiple serving size presentations in the sparkling and still beverage industry.

In Brazil, Coca-Cola FEMSA competes against AmBev, a Brazilian company with a portfolio of brands that includes Pepsi, local brands with flavors such as guaraná, and proprietary beer brands. Coca-Cola FEMSA also competes against “B brands” or “Tubainas,” which are small, local producers of low-cost flavored sparkling beverages that represent a significant portion of the sparkling beverage market.

In Argentina, Coca-Cola FEMSA’s main competitor is Buenos Aires Embotellador S.A., or BAESA, a Pepsi bottler, which is owned by Argentina’s principal brewery, Quilmes Industrial S.A., and indirectly controlled by AmBev. In addition, Coca-Cola FEMSA competes with a number of competitors offering generic, low-priced sparkling beverages as well as many other generic products and private label proprietary supermarket brands.

Venezuela. In Venezuela, Coca-Cola FEMSA’s main competitor is Pepsi-Cola Venezuela, C.A., a joint venture formed between PepsiCo and Empresas Polar, S.A., the leading beer distributor in the country. Coca-Cola FEMSA also competes with the producers of Big Cola in part of this country.

Raw Materials

Pursuant to its bottler agreements, Coca-Cola FEMSA is authorized to manufacture, sell and distribute Coca-Cola trademark beverages within specific geographic areas, and Coca-Cola FEMSA is required to purchase in all of its territories for all Coca-Cola trademark beverages concentrate from companies designated by The Coca-Cola Company and sweeteners from companies authorized by The Coca-Cola Company. Concentrate prices for Coca-Cola trademark beverages are determined as a percentage of the weighted average retail price in local currency net of applicable taxes. Although The Coca-Cola Company has the right to unilaterally set the price of concentrates, in practice this percentage has historically been set pursuant to periodic negotiations with The Coca-Cola Company.

In the past, The Coca-Cola Company has increased concentrate prices for Coca-Cola trademark beverages in some of the countries in which Coca-Cola FEMSA operates. In 2014, The Coca-Cola Company informed Coca-Cola FEMSA that it will gradually increase concentrate prices for certain Coca-Cola trademark beverages over a five year period in Costa Rica and Panama beginning in 2014. Based on Coca-Cola FEMSA’s estimates, it currently does not expect these increases to have a material adverse effect on its results of operation. Most recently, The Coca-Cola Company also informed Coca-Cola FEMSA that it will gradually increase concentrate prices for flavored water over a four year period in Mexico beginning in April 2015. The Coca-Cola Company may unilaterally increase concentrate prices again in the future and Coca-Cola FEMSA may not be successful in negotiating or implementing measures to mitigate the negative effect this may have in the prices of its products or its results. See “Item 10. Additional Information—Material Contracts—Material Contracts Relating to Coca-Cola FEMSA—Cooperation Framework with The Coca-Cola Company.”

In addition to concentrate, Coca-Cola FEMSA purchases sweeteners, carbon dioxide, resin and preforms to make plastic bottles, finished plastic and glass bottles, cans, caps and fountain containers, as well as other packaging materials and raw materials. Sweeteners are combined with water to produce basic syrup, which is added to the concentrate as the sweetener for most of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s beverages. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s bottler agreements provide that, with respect to Coca-Cola trademark beverages, these materials may be purchased only from suppliers approved by The Coca-Cola Company, including certain of our affiliates. Prices for packaging materials and HFCS historically have been determined with reference to the U.S. dollar, although the local currency equivalent in a particular country is subject to price volatility in accordance with changes in exchange rates. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s most significant packaging raw material costs arise from the purchase of resin, plastic preforms to make plastic bottles and finished plastic bottles, which Coca-Cola FEMSA obtains from international and local producers. The prices of these materials are related to crude oil prices and global resin supply. In recent years Coca-Cola FEMSA has experienced volatility in the prices we pay for these materials. Across its territories, Coca-Cola FEMSA’s average price for resin in U.S. dollars decreased 4.6% in 2014 as compared to 2013.

Under Coca-Cola FEMSA’s agreements with The Coca-Cola Company, it may use raw or refined sugar or HFCS as sweeteners in its products. Sugar prices in all of the countries in which Coca-Cola FEMSA operates, other than Brazil, are subject to local regulations and other barriers to market entry that cause Coca-Cola FEMSA to pay in excess of international market prices for sugar in certain countries. In recent years, international sugar prices experienced significant volatility. Across Coca-Cola FEMSA’s territories, its average price for sugar in U.S. dollars decreased approximately 1.7% in 2014 as compared to 2013.

Coca-Cola FEMSA categorizes water as a raw material in its business. Coca-Cola FEMSA obtains water for the production of some of its natural spring water products, such as Manantial in Colombia and Crystal in Brazil, from spring water pursuant to concessions granted.

None of the materials or supplies that Coca-Cola FEMSA uses is presently in short supply, although the supply of specific materials could be adversely affected by strikes, weather conditions, governmental controls, national emergency situations, water shortages or the failure to maintain its existing water concessions.

Mexico and Central America. In Mexico, Coca-Cola FEMSA purchases its returnable plastic bottles from Graham Packaging México, S.A. de C.V., known as Graham, which is the exclusive supplier of returnable plastic bottles for The Coca-Cola Company and its bottlers in Mexico. Coca-Cola FEMSA mainly purchases resin from Indorama Ventures Polymers México, S. de R.L. de C.V. (formerly Arteva Specialties, S. de R.L. de C.V.), M. & G. Polímeros México, S.A. de C.V. and DAK Resinas Americas Mexico, S.A. de C.V., which Alpla México, S.A. de C.V., known as Alpla, and Envases Universales de México, S.A.P.I. de C.V. manufacture into non-returnable plastic bottles for Coca-Cola FEMSA.

Coca-Cola FEMSA purchases all its cans from Fábricas de Monterrey, S.A. de C.V. and Envases Universales de México, S.A.P.I. de C.V., through Promotora Mexicana de Embotelladoras, S.A. de C.V., known as PROMESA, a cooperative of Coca-Cola bottlers, in which, as of April 10, 2015, Coca-Cola FEMSA held a 35.0% equity interest. Coca-Cola FEMSA mainly purchases its glass bottles from EXCO Integral Services, S.A. de C.V. (formerly Compañía Vidriera, S.A. de C.V.), FEVISA Industrial, S.A. de C.V., and Glass & Silice, S.A. de C.V.

Coca-Cola FEMSA purchases sugar from, among other suppliers, PIASA and Beta San Miguel, S.A. de C.V., both sugar cane producers in which, as of April 10, 2015, Coca-Cola FEMSA held a 36.3% and 2.7% equity interest, respectively. Coca-Cola FEMSA purchases HFCS from Ingredion México, S.A. de C.V., Almidones Mexicanos, S.A. de C.V. and Cargill de México, S.A. de C.V.

Sugar prices in Mexico are subject to local regulations and other barriers to market entry that cause Coca-Cola FEMSA to pay higher prices than those paid in the international market. As a result, prices in Mexico have no correlation to international market prices. In 2014, sugar prices in Mexico decreased approximately 7.0% as compared to 2013.

In Central America, the majority of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s raw materials such as glass and plastic bottles are purchased from several local suppliers. Coca-Cola FEMSA purchases all of its cans from PROMESA. Sugar is available from suppliers that represent several local producers. In Costa Rica, Coca-Cola FEMSA acquires plastic non-returnable bottles from Alpla C.R. S.A., and in Nicaragua Coca-Cola FEMSA acquires such plastic bottles from Alpla Nicaragua, S.A.

South America (excluding Venezuela). In Colombia, Coca-Cola FEMSA uses sugar as a sweetener in most of its products, which it buys from several domestic sources. Coca-Cola FEMSA purchases plastic bottles from Amcor Rigid Plastics de Colombia, S.A. and Tapón Corona de Colombia S.A. Coca-Cola FEMSA has historically purchased all of its glass bottles from Peldar O-I; however, it has engaged new suppliers and has recently acquired glass bottles from Al Tajir and Frigoglass in both cases from the United Arab Emirates. Coca-Cola FEMSA purchases all of its cans from Crown Colombiana, S.A., which are only available through this local supplier. Grupo Ardila Lulle, owners of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s competitor Postobón, own a minority equity interest in Peldar O-I and Crown Colombiana, S.A.

Sugar is available in Brazil at local market prices, which historically have been similar to international prices. Sugar prices in Brazil decreased approximately 4.1% as compared to 2013. See “Item 11. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk—Commodity Price Risk.” Coca-Cola FEMSA purchases glass bottles, plastic bottles and cans from several domestic and international suppliers.

In Argentina, Coca-Cola FEMSA mainly uses HFCS that it purchases from several different local suppliers as a sweetener in its products. Coca-Cola FEMSA purchases glass bottles, plastic cases and other raw materials from several domestic sources. Coca-Cola FEMSA purchases plastic preforms, as well as returnable plastic bottles, at competitive prices from Andina Empaques S.A., a local subsidiary of Embotelladora Andina S.A., a Coca-Cola bottler with operations in Chile, Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay, and other local suppliers. Coca-Cola FEMSA also acquires plastic preforms from Alpla Avellaneda, S.A. and other suppliers.

Venezuela. In Venezuela, Coca-Cola FEMSA uses sugar as a sweetener in most of its products, which it purchase mainly from the local market. Since 2003, from time to time, Coca-Cola FEMSA has experienced a sugar shortage due to lower domestic production and the inability of the predominant sugar importers to obtain permission to import in a timely manner. While sugar distribution to the food and beverages industry and to retailers is controlled by the government, Coca-Cola FEMSA did not experience any disruptions during 2014 with respect to access to sufficient sugar supply.

However, we cannot assure you that Coca-Cola FEMSA will not experience disruptions in its ability to meet its sugar requirements in the future should the Venezuelan government impose restrictive measures. Coca-Cola FEMSA buys glass bottles from one local supplier, Productos de Vidrio, S.A., the only supplier authorized by The Coca-Cola Company. Coca-Cola FEMSA acquires most of its plastic non-returnable bottles from Alpla de Venezuela, S.A. and most of its aluminum cans from a local producer, Dominguez Continental, C.A.

Under current regulations promulgated by the Venezuelan authorities, Coca-Cola FEMSA’s ability and that of its suppliers to import some of the raw materials and other supplies used in its production could be limited, and access to the official exchange rate for these items, including, among others, concentrate, resin, aluminum, plastic caps, distribution trucks and vehicles is only achieved by obtaining proper approvals from the relevant authorities.

FEMSA Comercio

Overview and Background

FEMSA Comercio operates the largest chain of small-format stores in Mexico, measured in terms of number of stores as of December 31, 2014, mainly under the trade name OXXO. As of December 31, 2014, FEMSA Comercio operated 12,853 OXXO stores, of which 12,812 are located throughout the country, with a particularly strong presence in the northern part of Mexico, and the remaining 41 stores are located in Bogotá, Colombia.

FEMSA Comercio was established by FEMSA in 1978 when two OXXO stores were opened in Monterrey, one store in Mexico City and another store in Guadalajara. The motivating factor behind FEMSA’s entrance into the retail industry was to enhance beer sales through company-owned retail outlets as well as to gather information on customer preferences. In 2014, a typical OXXO store carried 2,744 different store keeping units (SKUs) in 31 main product categories.

In recent years, FEMSA Comercio has represented an effective distribution channel for our beverage products, as well as a rapidly growing point of contact with our consumers. Based on the belief that location plays a major role in the long-term success of a retail operation such as a small-format store, as well as a role in our continually improving ability to accelerate and streamline the new-store development process, FEMSA Comercio has focused on a strategy of rapid, profitable growth. FEMSA Comercio opened 1,040, 1,120 and 1,132 net new OXXO stores in 2012, 2013 and 2014, respectively. The accelerated expansion in the number of OXXO stores yielded total revenue growth of 12.4% to reach Ps. 109,624 million in 2014. OXXO same-store sales increased an average of 2.7%, driven by an increased average customer ticket without any change in same-store traffic. FEMSA Comercio performed approximately 3.4 billion transactions in 2014 compared to 3.2 billion transactions in 2013.

Business Strategy

A fundamental element of FEMSA Comercio’s business strategy is to utilize its position in the small-format store market to grow in a cost-effective and profitable manner. As a market leader in small-format store retailing, based on internal company surveys, management believes that FEMSA Comercio has an in-depth understanding of its markets and significant expertise in operating a national store chain. FEMSA Comercio intends to continue increasing its store base while capitalizing on the market knowledge gained at existing stores.

FEMSA Comercio has developed proprietary models to assist in identifying appropriate store locations, store formats and product categories. Its model utilizes location-specific demographic data and FEMSA Comercio’s experience in similar locations to fine tune the store format and product offerings to the target market. Market segmentation is becoming an important strategic tool, and it should increasingly allow FEMSA Comercio to improve the operating efficiency of each location and the overall profitability of the chain.

FEMSA Comercio has made and will continue to make significant investments in IT to improve its ability to capture customer information from its existing OXXO stores and to improve its overall operating performance. The majority of products carried through OXXO stores are bar-coded, and all OXXO stores are equipped with point-of-sale systems that are integrated into a company-wide computer network. To implement revenue management strategies, FEMSA Comercio created a division in charge of product category management for products, such as beverages, fast food and perishables, to enhance and better utilize its consumer information base and market intelligence capabilities.

FEMSA Comercio utilizes a technology platform supported by an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system, as well as other technological solutions such as merchandising and point-of-sale systems, which will allow FEMSA Comercio to continue redesigning its key operating processes and enhance the usefulness of its market information going forward. In addition, FEMSA Comercio has expanded its operations by opening 3 new OXXO stores in Bogotá, Colombia in 2014.

FEMSA Comercio has adopted innovative promotional strategies in order to increase store traffic and sales. In particular, FEMSA Comercio sells high-frequency items such as beverages, snacks and cigarettes at competitive prices. FEMSA Comercio’s ability to implement this strategy profitably is partly attributable to the size of the OXXO stores chain, as FEMSA Comercio is able to work together with its suppliers to implement their revenue-management strategies through differentiated promotions. OXXO stores’ national and local marketing and promotional strategies are an effective revenue driver and a means of reaching new segments of the population while strengthening the OXXO brand. For example, the organization has refined its expertise in executing cross promotions (discounts on multi-packs or sales of complementary products at a special price) and targeted promotions to attract new customer segments, such as housewives, by expanding the offerings in the grocery product category in certain stores. FEMSA Comercio is also strengthening its capabilities to increasingly provide consumers with services such as utility bill payment and other basic transactions.

Store Locations

With 12,812 OXXO stores in Mexico and 41 OXXO stores in Colombia as of December 31, 2014, FEMSA Comercio operates the largest small-format store chain in Latin America measured by number of stores. OXXO stores are concentrated in the northern part of Mexico, but also have a growing presence in the rest of the country.

OXXO Stores

Regional Allocation in Mexico and Latin America^(*)

as of December 31, 2014

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FEMSA Comercio has aggressively expanded its number of OXXO stores over the past several years. The average investment required to open a new OXXO store varies, depending on location and format and whether the store is opened in an existing retail location or requires construction of a new store. FEMSA Comercio is generally able to use supplier credit to fund the initial inventory of new OXXO stores.

OXXO Stores

Total Growth


	Year Ended December 31,
	2014			2013			2012			2011			2010
Total OXXO stores		12,853			11,721			10,601			9,561			8,426
Store growth (% change over previous year)		9.7	%		10.6	%		10.9	%		13.5	%		14.9	%

FEMSA Comercio currently expects to continue the OXXO stores growth trend established over the past several years by emphasizing growth in areas of high economic potential in existing markets and by expanding in underserved and unexploited markets. Management believes that the southeast part of Mexico is particularly underserved by the small-format store industry.

The identification of locations and pre-opening planning in order to optimize the results of new OXXO stores are important elements in FEMSA Comercio’s growth plan. FEMSA Comercio continuously reviews store performance against certain operating and financial benchmarks to optimize the overall performance of the chain. OXXO stores unable to maintain benchmark standards are generally closed. Between December 31, 2010 and 2014, the total number of OXXO stores increased by 4,427, which resulted from the opening of 4,573 new stores and the closing of 146 existing stores.

Competition

FEMSA Comercio, mainly through OXXO stores, competes in the overall retail market, which we believe is highly competitive. OXXO stores face competition from small-format stores like 7-Eleven, Super Extra, Super City, Círculo K stores and other numerous chains of retailers across Mexico, from other regional small-format retailers to small informal neighborhood stores. OXXO competes both for consumers and for new locations for stores and the managers to operate those stores. FEMSA Comercio operates in the 32 Mexican states and has much broader geographical coverage than any of its competitors in Mexico.

Market and Store Characteristics

Market Characteristics

FEMSA Comercio is placing increased emphasis on market segmentation and differentiation of store formats to more appropriately serve the needs of customers on a location-by-location basis. The principal segments include residential neighborhoods, commercial and office locations and stores near schools and universities, along with other types of specialized locations.

Approximately 64.3% of OXXO stores’ customers are between the ages of 15 and 35. FEMSA Comercio also segments the market according to demographic criteria, including income level.

OXXO Store Characteristics

The average size of an OXXO store is approximately 104 square meters of selling space, excluding space dedicated to refrigeration, storage or parking. The average constructed area of a store is approximately 187 square meters and, when parking areas are included, the average store size is approximately 421 square meters.

FEMSA Comercio—Operating Indicators


	Year Ended December 31,
	2014			2013			2012			2011			2010
	(percentage increase compared to previous year)
Total FEMSA Comercio revenues		12.4	%		12.9	%		16.6	%		19.0	%		16.3	%
OXXO same-store sales⁽¹⁾		2.7	%		2.4	%		7.7	%		9.2	%		5.2	%

(1)	Same-store sales growth is calculated by comparing the sales of stores for each year that have been in operation for more than 12 months with the sales of those same stores during the previous year.

Beer, cigarettes, soft drinks and other beverages and snacks represent the main product categories for OXXO stores. FEMSA Comercio has a distribution agreement with Cuauhtémoc Moctezuma (which is now part of the Heineken Group). As a result of this agreement, OXXO stores only carry beer brands produced and distributed by Cuauhtémoc Moctezuma. OXXO stores will continue to benefit from the existing relationship under which Cuauhtémoc Moctezuma will continue to be the exclusive supplier of beer to OXXO until June 2020.

Approximately 59% of OXXO stores are operated by independent managers responsible for all aspects of store operations. The managers are commission agents and are not employees of FEMSA Comercio. Each store manager is the legal employer of the store’s staff, which typically numbers six people per store. FEMSA Comercio continually invests in on-site operating personnel, with the objective of promoting loyalty, customer service and low personnel turnover in the stores.

Advertising and Promotion

FEMSA Comercio’s marketing efforts for OXXO stores include both specific product promotions and image advertising campaigns. These strategies seek to increase store traffic and sales, and to reinforce the OXXO name and market position.

FEMSA Comercio manages its advertising for OXXO stores on three levels depending on the nature and scope of the specific campaign: local or store-specific, regional and national. Store-specific and regional campaigns are closely monitored to ensure consistency with the overall corporate image of OXXO stores and to avoid conflicts with national campaigns. FEMSA Comercio primarily uses point of purchase materials, flyers, handbills and print and radio media for promotional campaigns, although television is used occasionally for the introduction of new products and services. The OXXO store chain’s image and brand name are presented consistently across all stores, irrespective of location.

Inventory and Purchasing

FEMSA Comercio has placed considerable emphasis on improving operating performance. As part of these efforts, FEMSA Comercio continues to invest in extensive information management systems to improve inventory management. Electronic data collection has enabled FEMSA Comercio to reduce average inventory levels. Inventory replenishment decisions are carried out on a store-by-store basis.

Management believes that the OXXO store chain’s scale of operations provides FEMSA Comercio with a competitive advantage in its ability to realize strategic alliances with suppliers. General category offerings are determined on a national level, although purchasing decisions are implemented on a local, regional or national level, depending on the nature of the product category. Given the fragmented nature of the retail industry in Mexico in general, Mexican producers of beer, soft drinks, bread, dairy products, snacks, cigarettes and other high-frequency products have established proprietary distribution systems with extensive direct distribution routes. As a result, approximately 53% of the OXXO store chain’s total sales consist of products that are delivered directly to the stores by suppliers. Other products with longer shelf lives are distributed to stores by FEMSA Comercio’s distribution system, which includes 16 regional warehouses located in Monterrey, Guadalajara, Mexicali, Mérida, León, Obregón, Puebla, Queretaro, Chihuahua, Reynosa, Saltillo, Tijuana, Toluca, Villahermosa and two in Mexico City. The distribution centers operate a fleet of approximately 792 trucks that make deliveries to each store approximately twice per week.

Seasonality

OXXO stores experience periods of high demand in December, as a result of the holidays, and in July and August, as a result of increased consumption of beer and soft drinks during the hot summer months. The months of November and February are generally the weakest sales months for OXXO stores. In general, colder weather during these months reduces store traffic and consumption of cold beverages.

Entry into Drugstore Market

During 2013, FEMSA Comercio entered the drugstore market in Mexico through two transactions. FEMSA Comercio through CCF, closed the acquisition of Farmacias YZA, a leading drugstore operator in Southeast Mexico, headquartered in Merida, Yucatan. The founding shareholders of Farmacias YZA hold a 25% stake in CCF. Following this transaction, on May 13, 2013, CCF acquired Farmacias Moderna, a leading drugstore operator in the western state of Sinaloa.

In December 2014, FEMSA Comercio through CCF agreed to acquire 100% of Farmacias Farmacón, a a regional pharmacy chain consisting of 213 stores in the northwestern Mexican states of Sinaloa, Sonora, Baja California and Baja California Sur. With this transaction, FEMSA Comercio will reach a total of approximately 803 pharmacy stores. The transaction is pending customary regulatory approvals, and is expected to close during the second quarter of 2015.

The rationale for entering this new market is anchored on our belief that FEMSA Comercio has developed certain capabilities and skills that should be applicable and useful in the operation of other small retail formats. These capabilities include site selection, logistics, business processes, human resources, inventory and supplier management. The drugstore market in Mexico is very fragmented and FEMSA Comercio believes it is well equipped to create value by entering this market and pursuing a growth strategy that maximizes the opportunity.

Entry into Quick Service Restaurant Market

Following the same rationale that its capabilities and skills are well suited to different types of small-format retail, during 2013 FEMSA Comercio also entered the quick service restaurant market in Mexico through the 80% acquisition of Doña Tota. This is a leading regional chain specializing in Mexican food with a particularly strong presence in the northeast of the country. This acquisition presented FEMSA Comercio with the opportunity to grow Doña Tota’s stand-alone store base across the country, while also offering the benefit of advancing FEMSA Comercio’s prepared food capabilities and expertise.

Gas Station Market

Since 1995, FEMSA Comercio has been providing services and assets for the operation of gasoline service stations through agreements with third parties that own Petroleos Mexicanos (PEMEX) franchises, using the commercial brand OXXO Gas. As of December 31, 2014 there were 227 OXXO Gas stations, most of them adjacent to OXXO stores.

Mexican legislation has historically precluded FEMSA Comercio from participating in the retail sale of gasoline and therefore precluded ownership of PEMEX franchises, given our foreign institutional investor base. In response to recent changes in this legislation, FEMSA Comercio has agreed to acquire the related PEMEX franchises from the aforementioned third parties and plans to lease, acquire or open more gasoline service stations in the future.

Other Stores

FEMSA Comercio also operates other small-format stores, which include soft discount stores with a focus on perishables and liquor stores.

Equity Investment in the Heineken Group

As of December 31, 2014, FEMSA owned a non-controlling interest in the Heineken Group, one of the world’s leading brewers. As of December 31, 2014, our 20% economic interest in the Heineken Group was comprised of 43,018,320 shares of Heineken Holding N.V. and 72,182,203 shares of Heineken N.V. For 2014, FEMSA recognized equity income of Ps. 5,244 million regarding its 20% economic interest in the Heineken Group; see Note 10 to our audited consolidated financial statements.

As described above, FEMSA Comercio has a distribution agreement with Cuauhtémoc Moctezuma (which is now a part of the Heineken Group) pursuant to which OXXO stores only carry beer brands produced and distributed by Cuauhtémoc Moctezuma. OXXO stores will continue to benefit from the existing relationship under which Cuauhtémoc Moctezuma will continue to be the exclusive supplier of beer to OXXO until June 2020. As of April 30, 2010, Coca-Cola FEMSA has agreed with Cervejarias Kaiser (also now part of the Heineken Group) to continue to distribute and sell the Kaiser beer portfolio in Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Brazilian territories for a 20-year term beginning in 2003, consistent with the arrangement already in place. In addition, our logistic services subsidiary provides certain services to Cuauhtémoc Moctezuma and its subsidiaries.

Other Business

Our other business consists of the following smaller operations that support our core operations:

•

Our logistics services subsidiary provides a broad range of logistics and vehicle maintenance services to Coca-Cola FEMSA, FEMSA Comercio and third-party clients in the beverages, consumer products and retail industries. It has operations in Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Perú.

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Our refrigeration business produces vertical and horizontal commercial refrigerators for the soft drink, beer and food industries, with an annual capacity of 535,800 units at December 31, 2014. In 2014, this business sold 418,064 refrigeration units, 30% of which were sold to Coca-Cola FEMSA, and the remainder of which were sold to third parties.

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Our corporate services subsidiary employs our corporate staff, including the personnel managing the areas of finance, corporate accounting, taxation, legal, financial and strategic planning, human resources, corporate affairs and internal audit. Through this subsidiary, we direct, control, supervise and review the operations of our sub-holding companies. As of December 31, 2014, FEMSA Comercio and our other business subsidiaries pay management fees for the services provided to them. In addition, Coca-Cola FEMSA has entered into a services agreement pursuant to which it pays for specific services.

Description of Property, Plant and Equipment

As of December 31, 2014, we owned all of our manufacturing facilities and substantially all of our warehouses and distribution centers. Our properties primarily consisted of production and distribution facilities for our soft drink operations and office space. In addition, FEMSA Comercio owns approximately 11.2% of the OXXO store locations, while the other stores are located in properties that are rented under long-term lease arrangements with third parties.

The table below summarizes by country the installed capacity and percentage utilization of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s production facilities:

Bottling Facility Summary

As of December 31, 2014


Country	Installed Capacity (thousands of unit cases)		Utilization⁽¹⁾(%)
Mexico		2,939,936		58	%
Guatemala		45,500		69	%
Nicaragua		67,700		68	%
Costa Rica		81,200		56	%
Panama		56,700		57	%
Colombia		532,616		56	%
Venezuela		275,542		86	%
Brazil		1,044,932		67	%
Argentina		340,397		65	%

(1)	Annualized rate.

The table below summarizes by country the location and facility area of each of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s production facilities.

Bottling Facility by Location

As of December 31, 2014


Country	Plant	Facility Area
		(thousands of sq. meters)
Mexico	San Cristóbal de las Casas, Chiapas		45
	Cuautitlán, Estado de México		35
	Los Reyes la Paz, Estado de México		50
	Toluca, Estado de México		317
	León, Guanajuato		124
	Morelia, Michoacán		50
	Ixtacomitán, Tabasco		117
	Apizaco, Tlaxcala		80
	Coatepec, Veracruz		142
	La Pureza Altamira, Tamaulipas		300
	Poza Rica, Veracruz		42
	Pacífico, Estado de México		89
	Cuernavaca, Morelos		37
	Toluca, Estado de México (Ojuelos)		41
	San Juan del Río, Querétaro		84
	Querétaro, Querétaro		80
	Cayaco, Acapulco		104

Guatemala	Guatemala City		46

Nicaragua	Managua		54

Costa Rica	Calle Blancos, San José		52
	Coronado, San José		14

Panama	Panama City		29

Colombia	Barranquilla		37
	Bogotá, DC		105
	Bucaramanga		26
	Cali		76
	Manantial, Cundinamarca		67
	Tocancipá		298
	Medellín		47


Country	Plant	Facility Area
		(thousands of sq. meters)
Venezuela	Antímano		15
	Barcelona		141
	Maracaibo		68
	Valencia		100

Brazil	Campo Grande		36
	Jundiaí		191
	Mogi das Cruzes		119
	Belo Horizonte		73
	Porto Real		108
	Maringá		160
	Marilia		159
	Curitiba		119
	Baurú		39
	Itabirito		320

Argentina	Alcorta, Buenos Aires		73
	Monte Grande, Buenos Aires		32

Insurance

We maintain an “all risk” insurance policy covering our properties (owned and leased), machinery and equipment and inventories as well as losses due to business interruptions. The policy covers damages caused by natural disaster, including hurricane, hail, earthquake and damages caused by human acts, including explosion, fire, vandalism and riot. We also maintain a freight transport insurance policy that covers damages to goods in transit. In addition, we maintain a liability insurance policy that covers product liability. We purchase our insurance coverage through an insurance broker. In 2014, the policies for “all risk” property insurance, freight transport insurance and liability insurance were issued by ACE Seguros, S.A. Our “all risk” coverage was partially reinsured in the international reinsurance market. We believe that our coverage is consistent with the coverage maintained by similar companies.

Capital Expenditures and Divestitures

Our consolidated capital expenditures, net of disposals, for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012 were Ps. 18,163 million, Ps. 17,882 million and Ps. 15,560 million respectively, and were for the most part financed from cash from operations generated by our subsidiaries. These amounts were invested in the following manner:

Year Ended December 31,

2014

2013

2012

(In millions of Mexican pesos)

Coca-Cola FEMSA

Ps. 11,313

Ps. 11,703

Ps. 10,259

FEMSA Comercio

5,191

5,683

4,707

Other

1,659

496

594

Total

Ps. 18,163

Ps. 17,882

Ps. 15,560

Coca-Cola FEMSA

In 2014, Coca-Cola FEMSA focused its capital expenditures on investments in (1) increasing production capacity, (2) placing coolers with retailers, (3) returnable bottles and cases, (4) improving the efficiency of its distribution infrastructure and (5) information technology. Through these measures, Coca-Cola FEMSA strives to improve its profit margins and overall profitability.

FEMSA Comercio

FEMSA Comercio’s principal investment activity is the construction and opening of new stores. During 2014, FEMSA Comercio opened 1,132 net new OXXO stores. FEMSA Comercio invested Ps. 5,191 million in 2014 in the addition of new stores, warehouses and improvements to leased properties.

Regulatory Matters

Antitrust Legislation

The Ley Federal de Competencia Económica (Federal Antitrust Law) became effective on June 22, 1993, regulating monopolistic practices and requiring Mexican government approval of certain mergers and acquisitions. The Federal Antitrust Law subjects the activities of certain Mexican companies, including us, to regulatory scrutiny.

In June 2013, following a comprehensive reform to the Mexican Constitution, a new antitrust authority with autonomy was created: the Federal Antitrust Commission (Comisión Federal de Competencia Económica, or the CFCE). As a result of these amendments, new antitrust and telecommunications specialized courts were created and commenced hearing cases in August 2013. In July 2014, a new Federal Antitrust Law came into effect based on the amended constitutional provisions.

These amendments granted more power to the CFCE, including the ability to regulate essential facilities, order the divestment of assets and eliminate barriers to competition, set higher fines for violations of the Federal Antitrust Law, implement important changes to rules governing mergers and anti-competitive behavior and limit the availability of legal defenses against the application of the law. Management believes that we are currently in compliance in all material respects with Mexican antitrust legislation.

In Mexico and in some of the other countries in which we operate, we are involved in different ongoing competition related proceedings. We believe that the outcome of these proceedings will not have a material adverse effect on our financial position or results. See “Item 8. Financial Information—Legal Proceedings—Coca-Cola FEMSA.”

Price Controls

Voluntary price restraints or statutory price controls have been imposed historically in several of the countries in which Coca-Cola FEMSA operates. Currently, there are no price controls on Coca-Cola FEMSA’s products in any of the territories in which it has operations, except for those in Argentina, where authorities directly supervise five products sold through supermarkets as a measure to control inflation, and Venezuela, where the government has imposed price controls on certain products, including bottled water. In addition, in January 2014, the Venezuelan government passed the Fair Prices Law (Ley Orgánica de Precios Justos), which was amended in November 2014 mainly to increase applicable fines and penalties. This law substitutes both the Access to Goods and Services Defense Law (Ley para la Defensa y Acceso a las Personas a los Bienes y Servicios) and the Fair Costs and Prices Law (Ley de Costos y Precios Justos), which have both been repealed. The purpose of this law is to establish regulations and administrative processes to impose a limit on profits earned on the sale of goods, including our products, seeking to maintain price stability of, and equal access to, goods and services. This law imposes an obligation to manufacturing companies to label products with the fair or maximum sales’ price for each product. Coca-Cola FEMSA is currently in the process of implementing the necessary procedures and expects to be in compliance with this requirement by the imposed deadline. This law also creates the National Office of Costs and Prices which main role is to oversee price controls and set maximum retail prices on certain consumer goods and services. We cannot assure you that Coca-Cola FEMSA will be in compliance at all times with these laws based on changes, market dynamics in these two countries and the lack of clarity of certain basic aspects of the applicable law in Venezuela. Any such changes and potential violations may have an adverse impact on Coca-Cola FEMSA. See “Item 3. Key Information—Risk Factors—Regulatory developments may adversely affect Coca-Cola FEMSA’s business.”

Mexican Tax Reform

In December of 2013, the Mexican government enacted a package of tax reforms (the “2014 Tax Reform”) which includes several significant changes to tax laws, discussed in further detail below, that entered into effect on January 1, 2014. The most significant changes are as follows:

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The introduction of a new withholding tax at the rate of 10% for dividends and/or distributions of earnings generated in 2014 and beyond;

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The elimination of the exemption on gains from the sale of shares through a stock exchange recognized under applicable Mexican tax law. The gain will be taxable at the rate of 10% and will be paid by the shareholder based on the information provided by the financial intermediary. Transferors that are residents of a country with which Mexico has entered into a tax treaty for the avoidance of double taxation will be exempt. See “Item 10. Additional Information—Taxation—Mexican Taxation.”

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A fee of one Mexican peso per liter on the sale and import of flavored beverages with added sugar, and an excise tax of 8% on food with caloric content equal to, or greater than 275 kilocalories per 100 grams of product;

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The prior 11% value added tax (VAT) rate that applied to transaction in the border region was raised to 16%, matching the general VAT rate applicable in the rest of Mexico;

•

The elimination of the tax on cash deposits (IDE) and the business flat tax (IETU);

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Deductions on exempt payroll items for workers are limited to 53%;

•

The income tax rate in 2013 and 2012 was 30%. Scheduled decreases to the income tax rate that would have reduced the rate to 29% in 2014 and 28% in 2015 and thereafter, were canceled in connection with the 2014 Tax Reform;

•

The repeal of the existing tax consolidation regime, which is effective as of January 1, 2014, modified the payment term of a tax on assets payable of Ps. 180, which will be paid over the following 5 years instead of an indefinite term; and

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The introduction of a new optional tax integration regime (a modified form of tax consolidation), which replaces the previous tax consolidation regime. The new optional tax integration regime requires an equity ownership of at least 80% for qualifying subsidiaries and would allow us to defer the annual tax payment of our profitable participating subsidiaries for a period equivalent to 3 years to the extent their individual tax expense exceeds the integrated tax expense of the Company.

Similar to other affected entities in the industry, Coca-Cola FEMSA has filed constitutional challenges (amparo) against the new special tax referred to above on the production, sale and importation of beverages with added sugar and HFCS. Coca-Cola FEMSA cannot ensure that these measures will have the desired effect or that Coca-Cola FEMSA will prevail in its constitutional challenge.

Other Recent Tax Reforms

On January 1, 2015, a general tax reform became effective in Colombia. This reform included the imposition of a new temporary tax on net equity through 2017 to Colombian residents and non-residents who own property in Colombia directly or indirectly through branches or permanent establishments. The relevant taxable base will be determined annually based on a formula. For net equity that exceeds 5.0 billion Colombian pesos (approximately US$ 2.1 million) the rate will be 1.15% in 2015, 1.00% in 2016 and 0.40% in 2017. In addition, the tax reform in Colombia imposed that the supplementary income tax at a rate of 9% as contributions to social programs, which was previously scheduled to decrease to 8% by 2015, will remain indefinitely. Additionally, this tax reform included the imposition of a temporary contribution to social programs at a rate of 5%, 6%, 8% and 9% for the years 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018, respectively. Finally, this reform establishes an income tax deduction of 2% of value-added tax paid in the acquisition or import of hard assets, such as tangible and amortizable assets that are not sold or transferred in the ordinary course of business and that are used for the production of goods or services.

In Guatemala, the income tax rate for 2014 was 28% and it decreased for 2015 to 25%, as scheduled.

On November 18, 2014, a tax reform became effective in Venezuela. This reform included changes on how the carrying value of operating losses is reported. The reform established that operating losses carried forward year over year (but limited to three fiscal years) may not exceed 25% of the taxable income in the relevant period. The reform also eliminated the possibility to carry over losses relating to inflationary adjustments and included changes that grant Venezuelan tax authorities broader powers and authority in connection with their ability to enact administrative rulings related to income tax withholding and to collect taxes and increase fines and penalties for tax-related violations, including the ability to confiscate assets without a court order.

Taxation of Beverages

All the countries in which Coca-Cola FEMSA operates, except for Panama, impose a value-added tax on the sale of sparkling beverages, with a rate of 16% in Mexico, 12% in Guatemala, 15% in Nicaragua, 16.2% in Costa Rica, 16% in Colombia (applied only to the first sale in the supply chain), 12% in Venezuela, 21% in Argentina, and in Brazil 17% in the states of Mato Grosso do Sul and Goiás and 18% in the states of São Paulo, Minas Gerais, Paraná and Rio de Janeiro. The state of Rio de Janeiro also charges an additional 1% as a contribution to a poverty eradication fund. In Brazil the value-added tax is grossed-up and added, along with federal sales tax, at the taxable basis. In addition, Coca-Cola FEMSA is responsible for charging and collecting the value-added tax from each of its retailers in Brazil, based on average retail prices for each state where it operates, defined primarily through a survey conducted by the government of each state, which in 2014 represented an average taxation of approximately 9.4% over net sales.

In addition, several of the countries in which Coca-Cola FEMSA operates impose the following excise or other taxes:

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Mexico imposes an excise tax of Ps. 1.00 per liter on the production, sale and importation of beverages with added sugar and HFCS as of January 1, 2014. This tax is applied only to the first sale and Coca-Cola FEMSA is responsible for charging and collecting this excise tax.

•

Guatemala imposes an excise tax of 0.18 cents in local currency (Ps. 0.3489 as of December 31, 2014) per liter of sparkling beverage.

•

Costa Rica imposes a specific tax on non-alcoholic bottled beverages based on the combination of packaging and flavor, currently assessed at 18.35 colones (Ps. 0.4955 as of December 31, 2014) per 250 ml, and an excise tax currently assessed at 6.373 colones (approximately Ps. 0.174 as of December 31, 2014) per 250 ml.

•

Nicaragua imposes a 9.0% tax on consumption, and municipalities impose a 1.0% tax on our Nicaraguan gross income.

•

Panama imposes a 5.0% tax based on the cost of goods produced and a 10.0% selective consumption tax on syrups, powders and concentrate.

•

Argentina imposes an excise tax of 8.7% on sparkling beverages containing less than 5.0% lemon juice or less than 10.0% fruit juice, and an excise tax of 4.2% on sparkling water and flavored sparkling beverages with 10.0% or more fruit juice, although this excise tax is not applicable to some of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s products.

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Brazil assesses an average production tax of approximately 4.8% and an average sales tax of approximately 8.8% over net sales. These taxes are fixed by the federal government based on national average retail prices obtained through surveys. The national average retail price of each product and presentation is multiplied by a fixed rate combined with specific multipliers for each presentation, to obtain a fixed tax per liter, per product and presentation. These taxes are applied only to the first sale and Coca-Cola FEMSA is responsible for charging and collecting these taxes from each of its retailers. Beginning on May 1, 2015, these federal taxes will be applied based on the price sold, as detailed in Coca-Cola FEMSA’s invoices, instead of an average retail price combined with a fixed tax rate and multiplier per presentation. Based on this new calculation, Coca-Cola FEMSA expects production tax will range between 3.2% and 4.0% and sales tax will range between 8.3% and 11.7%.

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Colombia’s municipalities impose a sales tax that varies between 0.35% and 1.2% of net sales.

•

Venezuela’s municipalities impose a variable excise tax applied only to the first sale that varies between 0.6% and 2.5% of net sales.

Environmental Matters

In all of our territories, our operations are subject to federal and state laws and regulations relating to the protection of the environment.

Mexico

The Mexican federal authority in charge of overseeing compliance with the federal environmental laws is the Secretaria del Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales or Secretary of Environment and Natural Resources, which we refer to as “SEMARNAT”. An agency of SEMARNAT, the Procuraduría Federal de Protección al Ambiente or Federal Environmental Protection Agency, which we refer to as “PROFEPA”, has the authority to enforce the Mexican federal environmental laws. As part of its enforcement powers, PROFEPA can bring administrative, civil and criminal proceedings against companies and individuals that violate environmental laws, regulations and Mexican Official Standards and has the authority to impose a variety of sanctions. These sanctions may include, among other things, monetary fines, revocation of authorizations, concessions, licenses, permits or registrations, administrative arrests, seizure of contaminating equipment, and in certain cases, temporary or permanent closure of facilities. Additionally, as part of its inspection authority, PROFEPA is entitled to periodically inspect the facilities of companies whose activities are regulated by the Mexican environmental legislation and verify compliance therewith. Furthermore, in special situations or certain areas where federal jurisdiction is not applicable or appropriate, the state and municipal authorities can administer and enforce certain environmental regulations of their respective jurisdictions.

In Mexico, the principal legislation relating to environmental matters is the Ley General de Equilibrio Ecológico y Protección al Ambiente (Federal General Law for Ecological Equilibrium and Environmental Protection, or the Mexican Environmental Law) and the Ley General para la Prevención y Gestión Integral de los Residuos (General Law for the Prevention and Integral Management of Waste). Under the Mexican Environmental Law, rules have been promulgated concerning water, air and noise pollution and hazardous substances. In particular, Mexican environmental laws and regulations require that we file periodic reports with respect to air and water emissions and hazardous wastes and set forth standards for waste water discharge that apply to our operations. We are also subject to certain minimal restrictions on the operation of delivery trucks in Mexico City. We have implemented several programs designed to facilitate compliance with air, waste, noise and energy standards established by current Mexican federal and state environmental laws, including a program that installs catalytic converters and liquid petroleum gas in delivery trucks for our operations in Mexico City.

In addition, we are subject to the Ley de Aguas Nacionales de 1992 (as amended, the 1992 Water Law), enforced by the Comisión Nacional del Agua (National Water Commission). Adopted in December 1992, and amended in 2004, the 1992 Water Law provides that plants located in Mexico that use deep water wells to supply their water requirements must pay a fee to the local governments for the discharge of residual waste water to drainage. Pursuant to this law, certain local authorities test the quality of the waste water discharge and charge plants an additional fee for measurements that exceed certain standards published by the National Water Commission. In the case of non-compliance with the law, penalties, including closures, may be imposed. All of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s bottling plants located in Mexico have met these standards. In addition, Coca-Cola FEMSA’s plants in Apizaco and San Cristóbal are certified with ISO 14001.

In Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Mexican operations, it established a partnership with The Coca-Cola Company and ALPLA, a supplier of plastic bottles to Coca-Cola FEMSA in Mexico, to create Industria Mexicana de Reciclaje (IMER), a PET recycling facility located in Toluca, Mexico. This facility started operations in 2005 and has a recycling capacity of approximately 25,000 metric tons per year from which 15,000 metric tons can be re-used in PET bottles for food packaging purposes. Coca-Cola FEMSA has also continued contributing funds to a nationwide recycling company, Ecología y Compromiso Empresarial (Environmentally Committed Companies). In addition, Coca-Cola FEMSA’s plants located in Toluca, Reyes, Cuautitlán, Apizaco, San Cristóbal, Morelia, Ixtacomitan, Coatepec, Poza Rica, Ojuelos, Pacífico and Cuernavaca have received or are in the process of receiving a Certificado de Industria Limpia (Certificate of Clean Industry).

Additionally, several of our subsidiaries have entered into long-term wind power purchase agreements with wind park developers in Mexico to receive electrical energy for use at production and distribution facilities of FEMSA and Coca-Cola FEMSA throughout Mexico, as well as for a significant number of OXXO stores.

Central America

Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Central American operations are subject to several federal and state laws and regulations relating to the protection of the environment, which have been enacted in the last ten years, as awareness has increased in this region about the protection of the environment and the disposal of hazardous and toxic materials as well as water usage. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Costa Rica and Panama operations have participated in a joint effort along with the local division of The Coca-Cola Company called Misión Planeta (Mission Planet) for the collection and recycling of non-returnable plastic bottles.

Colombia

Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Colombian operations are subject to several Colombian federal and state laws and regulations related to the protection of the environment and the disposal of treated water and toxic and hazardous materials. These laws include the control of atmospheric emissions, noise emissions, disposal of treated water and strict limitations on the use of chlorofluorocarbons. In addition, on February 6, 2012, Colombia promulgated Decree No. 303, which requires Coca-Cola FEMSA to apply for an authorization to discharge its water into public waterways. Coca-Cola FEMSA is engaged in nationwide reforestation programs, and campaigns for the collection and recycling of glass and plastic bottles. Coca-Cola FEMSA has also obtained and maintained the ISO 9001, ISO 14001, OHSAS 18001, FSSC 22000 and PAS 220 certifications for its plants located in Medellin, Cali, Bogota, Barranquilla, Bucaramanga and La Calera, as recognition for the highest quality and food harmlessness in its production processes, which is evidence of its strict level of compliance with relevant Colombian regulations. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s six plants joined a small group of companies that have obtained these certifications. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s new plant located in Tocancipá commenced operations in February 2015 and Coca-Cola FEMSA expects that it will obtain the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification.

Venezuela

Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Venezuelan operations are subject to several Venezuelan federal, state and municipal laws and regulations related to the protection of the environment. The most relevant of these laws are the Ley Orgánica del Ambiente (Organic Environmental Law), the Ley Sobre Sustancias, Materiales y Desechos Peligrosos (Substance, Material and Dangerous Waste Law), the Ley Penal del Ambiente (Criminal Environmental Law) and the Ley de Aguas (Water Law). Since the enactment of the Organic Environmental Law in 1995, Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Venezuelan subsidiary has presented the proper authorities with plans to bring their production facilities and distribution centers into compliance with applicable laws, which mainly consist of building or expanding the capacity of water treatment plants in Coca-Cola FEMSA’s bottling facilities. Coca-Cola FEMSA currently has water treatment plants in its bottling facilities located in the city of Barcelona, Valencia and in its Antimano bottling plant in Caracas and Coca-Cola FEMSA is concluding the construction and expansion of its current water treatment plant in its bottling facility in Maracaibo, which is expected to commence operations in the fourth quarter of 2015. In December 2011, Coca-Cola FEMSA obtained the ISO 14000 certification for all of its plants in Venezuela.

In addition, in December 2010, the Venezuelan government approved the Ley Integral de Gestión de la Basura (Comprehensive Waste Management Law), which regulates solid waste management and which may be applicable to manufacturers of products for mass consumption. The full scope of this law has not yet been established.

Brazil

Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Brazilian operations are subject to several federal, state and municipal laws and regulations related to the protection of the environment. Among the most relevant laws and regulations are those dealing with the emission of toxic and hazardous gases, disposal of wastewater and solid waste, and soil contamination by hazardous chemicals, which impose penalties, such as fines, facility closures or criminal charges depending upon the level of non-compliance.

Coca-Cola FEMSA’s production plant located in Jundiaí has been recognized by the Brazilian authorities for its compliance with environmental regulations and for having standards well above those imposed by the law. The plant of Jundiaí has been certified for GAO-Q and GAO-E. In addition, the plants of Jundiaí, Mogi das Cruzes, Campo Grande, Marília, Maringá, Curitiba and Bauru have been certified for (i) ISO 9001: 2008; (ii) ISO 14001: 2004 and; (iii) norm OHSAS 18001: 2007. In 2012, the Jundiaí, Campo Grande, Bauru, Marília, Curitiba, Maringá, Porto Real and Mogi das Cruzes plants were certified in standard FSSC22000.

In Brazil, a municipal regulation of the City of São Paulo, implemented pursuant to Law 13.316/2002, came into effect in May 2008. This regulation requires Coca-Cola FEMSA to collect for recycling a specified annual percentage of plastic bottles made from PET sold in the City of São Paulo; such percentage increases each year. Beginning in May 2011, Coca-Cola FEMSA was required to collect 90% of the PET bottles sold in the city of São Paulo for recycling. Currently, Coca-Cola FEMSA is not able to collect the entire required volume of PET bottles it has sold in the City of São Paulo for recycling. Since Coca-Cola FEMSA does not meet the requirements of this regulation, which we believe to be more onerous than those imposed by the countries with the highest recycling standards, it could be fined and be subject to other sanctions, such as the suspension of operations in any of its plants and/or distribution centers located in the City of São Paulo. In May 2008, Coca-Cola FEMSA, together with other bottlers in the city of São Paulo, through the Associação Brasileira das Indústrias de Refrigerantes e de Bebidas Não-alcoólicas (Brazilian Soft Drink and Non-Alcoholic Beverage Association, or ABIR), filed a motion requesting a court to overturn this regulation due to the impossibility of compliance. In addition, in November 2009, in response to a municipal authority request for Coca-Cola FEMSA to demonstrate the destination of the PET bottles sold by it in the City of São Paulo, Coca-Cola FEMSA filed a motion showing all of its recycling programs and requesting a more practical timeline to comply with the requirements of the law. In October 2010, the municipal authority of the City of São Paulo levied a fine on Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Brazilian operating subsidiary of 250,000 Brazilian reais (approximately Ps. 1.4 million as of December 31, 2014) on the grounds that the report submitted by Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Brazilian operating subsidiary did not comply with the 75% proper disposal requirement for the period from May 2008 to May 2010. Coca-Cola FEMSA filed an appeal against this fine, which was denied by the municipal authority in May 2013, and the administrative stage is therefore closed. Coca-Cola FEMSA is currently evaluating next steps. In July 2012, the State Appellate Court of São Paulo rendered a decision admitting an interlocutory appeal filed on behalf of ABIR suspending the fines and other sanctions to ABIR’s associated companies, including Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Brazilian subsidiary, for alleged noncompliance with the recycling municipal regulation up to the final resolution of the lawsuit. Coca-Cola FEMSA is currently awaiting final resolution of the lawsuit filed on behalf of ABIR. We cannot assure you that these measures will have the desired effect or that Coca-Cola FEMSA will prevail in its judicial challenge.

In August 2010, Law No. 12.305/2010 established the Brazilian National Solid Waste Policy. This policy is based on the principle of shared responsibility between the government, companies and the public, and provides for the post-consumption return of products to companies and requires public authorities to implement waste management programs. This law is regulated by Federal Decree No. 7.404/2010, and was published in December 2010. In response to the Brazilian National Solid Waste Policy, in December 2012, a proposal was provided to the Ministry of the Environment by almost 30 associations involved in the packaging sector, including ABIR in its capacity as representative for The Coca-Cola Company, Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Brazilian subsidiary, and other bottlers. The proposal involved creating a “coalition” to implement systems for reverse logistics packaging non-dangerous waste that makes up the dry portion of municipal solid waste or its equivalent. The goal of the proposal is to create methodologies for sustainable development, and protect the environment, society, and the economy. Coca-Cola FEMSA is currently awaiting a final resolution from the Ministry of Environment, which it expect to receive during 2015.

Argentina

Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Argentine operations are subject to federal and municipal laws and regulations relating to the protection of the environment. The most significant of these are regulations concerning waste water discharge, which are enforced by the Secretaría de Ambiente y Desarrollo Sustentable (Ministry of Natural Resources and Sustainable Development) and the Organismo Provincial para el Desarrollo Sostenible (Provincial Organization for Sustainable Development) for the province of Buenos Aires. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Alcorta plant is in compliance with environmental standards and Coca-Cola FEMSA has been certified for ISO 14001:2004 for its plants and operative units in Buenos Aires.

For all of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s plant operations, it employs an environmental management system: Sistema de Administración Ambiental (Environmental Administration System, or EKOSYSTEM) that is contained within Sistema Integral de Calidad (Integral Quality System, or SICKOF).

Coca-Cola FEMSA has expended, and may be required to expend in the future, funds for compliance with and remediation under local environmental laws and regulations. Currently, we do not believe that such costs will have a material adverse effect on Coca-Cola FEMSA’s results or financial condition. However, since environmental laws and regulations and their enforcement are becoming increasingly more stringent in Coca-Cola FEMSA’s territories, and there is increased recognition by local authorities of the need for higher environmental standards in the countries where it operates, changes in current regulations may result in an increase in costs, which may have an adverse effect on Coca-Cola FEMSA’s future results or financial condition. Coca-Cola FEMSA is not aware of any significant pending regulatory changes that would require a significant amount of additional remedial capital expenditures.

We do not believe that Coca-Cola FEMSA’s business activities pose a material risk to the environment, and we believe that Coca-Cola FEMSA is in material compliance with all applicable environmental laws and regulations.

Other Regulations

In December 2009, the Venezuelan government issued a decree requiring a reduction in energy consumption by at least 20% for industrial companies whose consumption is greater than two megawatts per hour and to submit an energy-usage reduction plan. Some of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s bottling operations in Venezuela outside of Caracas met this threshold and it submitted a plan, which included the purchase of generators for its plants. In January 2010, the Venezuelan government subsequently implemented power cuts and other measures for all industries in Caracas whose consumption was above 35 kilowatts per hour. In 2011, Coca-Cola FEMSA installed electrical generators in its Antimano, Barcelona, Maracaibo and Valencia bottling facilities to mitigate any such risks and filed the respective energy usage reduction plans with the authorities. In addition, since January 2010, the Venezuelan government has implemented power cuts and other measures for all industries in Caracas whose consumption is above 35 kilowatts per hour and continues to do so.

In August 2010, the Mexican government approved a decree which regulated the sale of food and beverages by elementary and middle schools. In May 2014, the decree was replaced by a new decree that establishes mandatory guidelines applicable to the entire national education system (from elementary school through college). According to the decree, the sale of specific sparkling beverages and still beverages that contain sugar or HFCS by schools is prohibited. Schools are still allowed to sell water and certain still beverages, such as juices and juice-based beverages, that comply with the guidelines established in such decree. We cannot assure you that the Mexican government will not further restrict sales of other of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s products by such schools. These restrictions and any further restrictions could have an adverse impact on Coca-Cola FEMSA’s results of operations.

In January 2012, the Costa Rican government approved a decree which regulates the sale of food and beverages in public schools. The decree came into effect in 2012. According to the decree, the sale of specific sparkling beverages and still beverages that contain sugar, syrup or HFCS in any type of presentation in schools is prohibited. Coca-Cola FEMSA is still allowed to sell water and certain still beverages in schools. In December 2014, the Costa Rican government announced that it will be stricter in the enforcement of this decree. Although Coca-Cola FEMSA is in compliance with this law, we cannot assure you that the Costa Rican government will not further restrict sales of other of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s products in schools in the future; these restrictions and any further restrictions could have an adverse impact on Coca-Cola FEMSA’s results of operations.

In May 2012, the Venezuelan government adopted significant changes to labor regulations. This amendment to Venezuela’s labor regulations had a negative impact on Coca-Cola FEMSA’s business and operations. The principal changes that impacted Coca-Cola FEMSA’s operations are: (i) the requirement that employee terminations are now subject to governmental authorization; (ii) retroactive assessments for any modifications to Coca-Cola FEMSA’s severance payment system; (iii) a reduction in the maximum daily and weekly working hours (from 44 to 40 weekly); (iv) an increase in mandatory weekly breaks, prohibiting a reduction in salaries as a result of such increase; and (v) the requirement that all third party contractors participating in the manufacturing and sales processes of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s products be included in its payroll by no later than May 2015. Coca-Cola FEMSA is currently in compliance with these labor regulations and expects to include all third party contractors to its payroll by the imposed deadline.

In November 2014, the Venezuelan government amended the Foreign Investment Law. As part of the amendments made, the law now provides that at least 75% of the value of foreign investment must be comprised of assets located in Venezuela, which may include equipment, supplies or other goods or tangible assets required at the early stages of operations. By the end of the first fiscal year after commencement of operations in Venezuela, investors will be authorized to repatriate up to 80% of the profits derived from their investment. Any profits not otherwise repatriated in a fiscal year, may be accumulated and be repatriated the following fiscal year, together with profits generated during such year. In the event of liquidation, a company may repatriate up to 85% of the value of the foreign investment. Currently, the scope of this law is not entirely clear with respect to the liquidation process.

In September 2012, the Brazilian government issued Law No. 12,619 (Law of Professional Drivers), which regulates the working hours of professional drivers who distribute Coca-Cola FEMSA’s products from its plants to the distribution centers and to retailers and points of sale. Pursuant to this law, employers must keep a record of working hours, including overtime hours, of professional drivers in a reliable manner, such as electronic logbooks or worksheets. Coca-Cola FEMSA is currently in compliance with this law as we follow all these requirements.

In June 2014, the Brazilian government issued Law No. 12,997 (Law of Motorcycle Drivers) which imposes a risk premium of 30% of the base salary payable to all employees who drive motorcycles in their job. This risk premium became enforceable in October 2014, when the related rules and regulations were issued by the Ministry of Labor and Employment. Coca-Cola FEMSA believes that these rules and regulations were unduly issued by such Ministry since it did not comply with all the essential requirements established in Law No. 12,997. In November 2014, Coca-Cola FEMSA, in conjunction with other bottlers of the Coca-Cola system in Brazil and through the ABIR, filed an action against the Ministry of Labor and Employment to suspend the effects of such law. ABIR’s associated companies, including Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Brazilian subsidiary, were issued a preliminary injunction suspending the effects of the law and exempting us from paying the risk premium. We cannot assure you that the Brazilian government will not appeal the injunction with the competent courts in Brazil in order to restore the effects of Law No. 12,997.

In June 2013, following a comprehensive amendment to the Mexican Constitution, a new antitrust authority with autonomy was created: the CFCE. As a result of these amendments, new antitrust and telecommunications specialized courts were created and commenced hearing cases in August 2013. In July 2014, a new federal antitrust law came into effect based on the amended constitutional provisions. As part of these amendments, two new relative monopolistic practices were included: reductions in margins between prices to access essential raw materials and end-user prices of such raw materials and limitation or restriction on access to essential raw materials or supplies. Furthermore, the ability to close a merger or acquisition without antitrust clearance from the CFCE was eliminated. The regular waiting period for authorization has been extended to 60 business days. We cannot assure you that these new amendments and the creation of new governmental bodies and courts will not have an adverse effect on our business or our inorganic growth plans.

In 2013, the government of Argentina imposed a withholding tax at a rate of 10% on dividends paid by Argentine companies to non-Argentine holders. Similarly, in 2013, the government of Costa Rica repealed a tax exemption on dividends paid to Mexican residents. Future dividends will be subject to withholding tax at a rate of 15%.

In January 2014, a new Anti-Corruption Law in Brazil came into effect, which regulates bribery, corruption practices and fraud in connection with agreements entered into with governmental agencies. The main purpose of this law is to impose liability on companies carrying out such practices, establishing fines that can reach up to 20% of a company’s gross revenues in the previous fiscal year. Although Coca-Cola FEMSA believes it is in compliance with this law, if it was found liable for any of these practices, this law would have an adverse effect on its business.

Water Supply

In Mexico, Coca-Cola FEMSA obtains water directly from municipal utility companies and pumps water from its own wells pursuant to concessions obtained from the Mexican government on a plant-by-plant basis. Water use in Mexico is regulated primarily by the 1992 Water Law, and regulations issued thereunder, which created the National Water Commission. The National Water Commission is in charge of overseeing the national system of water use. Under the 1992 Water Law, concessions for the use of a specific volume of ground or surface water generally run from five- to fifty-year terms, depending on the supply of groundwater in each region as projected by the National Water Commission. Concessionaires may request that concession terms be extended before they expire. The Mexican government is authorized to reduce the volume of ground or surface water granted for use by a concession by whatever volume of water that is not used by the concessionaire for two consecutive years. However, because the current concessions for each of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s plants in Mexico do not match each plant’s projected needs for water in future years, we successfully negotiated with the Mexican government the right to transfer the unused volume under concessions from certain plants to other plants anticipating greater water usage in the future. These concessions may be terminated if, among other things, we use more water than permitted or we fail to pay required concession-related fees and do not cure such situations in a timely manner.

Although we have not undertaken independent studies to confirm the sufficiency of the existing groundwater supply, we believe that our existing concessions satisfy our current water requirements in Mexico.

In Brazil, Coca-Cola FEMSA buys water directly from municipal utility companies and we also capture water from underground sources, wells or surface sources (i.e., rivers), pursuant to concessions granted by the Brazilian government for each plant. According to the Brazilian Constitution, water is considered an asset of common use and can only be exploited for the national interest by Brazilians or companies formed under Brazilian law. Concessionaires and users have the responsibility for any damage to the environment. The exploitation and use of water is regulated by the Código de Mineração (Code of Mining, Decree Law No. 227/67), the Código de Águas Minerais (Mineral Water Code, Decree Law No. 7841/45), the National Water Resources Policy (Law No. 9433/97) and by regulations issued thereunder. The companies that exploit water are supervised by the Departamento Nacional de Produção Mineiral—DNPM (National Department of Mineral Production) and the National Water Agency in connection with federal health agencies, as well as state and municipal authorities. In Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Jundiaí, Marília, Curitiba, Maringá, Porto Real and Belo Horizonte plants, it does not exploit spring water. In its Mogi das Cruzes, Bauru and Campo Grande plants, it has all the necessary permits for the exploitation of spring water.

In Argentina, a state water company provides water to Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Alcorta plant on a limited basis; however, we believe the authorized amount meets Coca-Cola FEMSA’s requirements for this plant. In Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Monte Grande plant in Argentina, it pumps water from its own wells, in accordance with Law 25.688.

In Colombia, in addition to natural spring water, Coca-Cola FEMSA obtains water directly from its own wells and from utility companies. Coca-Cola FEMSA is required to have a specific concession to exploit water from natural sources. Water use in Colombia is regulated by Law No. 9 of 1979 and Decrees No. 1594 of 1984 and No. 2811 of 1974. In addition, on February 6, 2012, Colombia promulgated Decree No. 303, which requires Coca-Cola FEMSA to apply for water concessions and for authorization to discharge its water into public waterways. The National Institute of National Resources supervises companies that use water as a raw material for their business.

In Nicaragua, the use of water is regulated by the Ley General de Aguas Nacionales (National Water Law), and Coca-Cola FEMSA obtains water directly from its own wells. In Costa Rica, the use of water is regulated by the Ley de Aguas (Water Law). In both of these countries, Coca-Cola FEMSA owns and exploits its own water wells granted to it through governmental concessions. In Guatemala, no license or permits are required to exploit water from the private wells in Coca-Cola FEMSA’s own plants. In Panama, Coca-Cola FEMSA acquires water from a state water company, and the use of water is regulated by the Reglamento de Uso de Aguas de Panamá (Panama Use of Water Regulation). In Venezuela, Coca-Cola FEMSA uses private wells in addition to water provided by the municipalities, and it has taken the appropriate actions, including actions to comply with water regulations, to have water supply available from these sources, regulated by the Ley de Aguas (Water Law).

In addition, Coca-Cola FEMSA obtains water for the production of some of its natural spring water products, such as Manantial in Colombia and Crystal in Brazil, from spring water pursuant to concessions granted.

We cannot assure you that water will be available in sufficient quantities to meet Coca-Cola FEMSA’s future production needs, that it will be able to maintain its current concessions or that additional regulations relating to water use will not be adopted in the future in its territories. We believe that we are in material compliance with the terms of our existing water concessions and that we are in compliance with all relevant water regulations.

ITEM 4A.

UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS

None.

ITEM 5.

OPERATING AND FINANCIAL REVIEW AND PROSPECTS

The following discussion should be read in conjunction with, and is entirely qualified by reference to, our audited consolidated financial statements and the notes to those financial statements. Our consolidated financial statements were prepared in accordance with IFRS as issued by the IASB.

Overview of Events, Trends and Uncertainties

Management currently considers the following events, trends and uncertainties to be important to understanding its results and financial position during the periods discussed in this section:

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Coca-Cola FEMSA has continued to grow organic volumes at a steady but moderate pace and has successfully integrated its Grupo Yoli Mexican operations, Fluminense and Spaipa Brazilian operations. However, in the short term there is some pressure from the new tax measures in Mexico implemented in January 2014 and from macroeconomic uncertainty in certain South American markets, including currency volatility. Volume growth is mainly driven by the Coca-Cola brand across markets, together with the solid performance of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s still beverage portfolio.

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FEMSA Comercio has maintained high rates of OXXO store openings and continues to grow in terms of total revenues. FEMSA Comercio has lower operating margins than our beverage business. Given that FEMSA Comercio has lower operating margins and given its fixed cost structure, it is more sensitive to changes in sales which could negatively affect operating margins. In addition, the integration of the new small-format retail businesses could also affect margins at the FEMSA Comercio level, given that these businesses have lower margins than the OXXO business.

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Our consolidated results of operations are also significantly affected by the performance of the Heineken Group, as a result of our 20% economic interest. Our consolidated net income for 2014 included Ps. 5,244 million related to our non-controlling interest in the Heineken Group, as compared to Ps. 4,587 for 2013.

Our results and financial position are affected by the economic and market conditions in the countries where our subsidiaries conduct their operations, particularly in Mexico. Changes in these conditions are influenced by a number of factors, including those discussed in “Item 3. Key Information—Risk Factors.”

Recent Developments

In February 2015, the Venezuelan government eliminated the SICAD II exchange rate system. As of December 31, 2014, the last day the SICAD II exchange rate was available, the SICAD II exchange rate was 49.99 bolivars to US$ 1.00. We decided to use this SICAD II exchange rate to translate our results for the fourth quarter and the full year 2014 into our reporting currency, the Mexican peso. As a result, we recognized a reduction in equity of Ps. 11,836 million as of December 31, 2014 based on the valuation of our net investment in Venezuela at the SICAD II exchange rate of 49.99 bolivars per U.S. dollar. As of December 31, 2014, our foreign direct investment in Venezuela was Ps. 4,015 million, using the SICAD II exchange rate of 49.99 bolivars per US$ 1.00.

As of February 2015, there are three exchange rates in Venezuela. The official rate of 6.30 bolivars per U.S. dollar rate, the exchange rate determined by the state-run system known as SICAD, and a new exchange rate determined by the state-run system known as SIMADI. The SICAD determines the exchange rates based on limited periodic sales of U.S. dollars through auctions. The SIMADI determines the exchange rates based on supply and demand of U.S. dollars. The SICAD and SIMADI exchange rates in effect as of April 17, 2015, were 12.00 and 196.66 bolivars per US$ 1.00, respectively. The Venezuelan government has established that imports of certain of our raw materials into Venezuela qualify as transactions that may be settled using the official exchange rate of 6.30 bolivars per US$ 1.00. To the extent that imports of these raw materials continue to be so qualified, we will continue to account for these transactions using the official exchange rate. However, we will continue to monitor any changes that may effect the applicable exchange rate that we use to settle imports of our raw materials into Venezuela.

In November 2014, we announced that Federico Reyes Garcia, FEMSA’s Vice President of Corporate Development, would retire on April 1, 2015. Mr. Reyes Garcia will remain on the boards of directors and Finance Committees of FEMSA and Coca-Cola FEMSA. Javier Astaburuaga Sanjines, FEMSA’s Chief Financial and Corporate Officer, replaced Mr. Reyes Garcia as Vice President of Corporate Development. From his new position, Mr. Astaburuaga Sanjines will be closely involved in FEMSA’s strategic and M&A-related processes, and he will also continue to serve on the boards of directors of FEMSA and Coca-Cola FEMSA, as well as on the Heineken Supervisory Board. Effective January 1, 2015, Daniel Alberto Rodríguez Cofré joined FEMSA and on April 1, 2015 he replaced Mr. Astaburuaga Sanjines as Chief Financial and Corporate Officer, and he also serves on the boards of directors of FEMSA and Coca-Cola FEMSA.

Effects of Changes in Economic Conditions

Our results are affected by changes in economic conditions in Mexico, Brazil and in the other countries in which we operate. For the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013, and 2012, 68%, 63% and 62%, respectively, of our total sales were attributable to Mexico. As a result, we have significant exposure to the economic conditions of certain countries, particularly those in Central America, Colombia, Venezuela, Brazil and Argentina, although we continue to generate a substantial portion of our total sales from Mexico. Other than Venezuela, the participation of these other countries as a percentage of our total sales has not changed significantly during the last five years.

The Mexican economy is gradually recovering from a downturn as a result of the impact of the global financial crisis on many emerging economies in 2009. According to INEGI, Mexican GDP expanded by 2.1% in 2014 and by approximately 1.4% and 4.0% in 2013 and 2012, respectively. According to the Banco Nacional de México survey regarding the economic expectations of specialists, Mexican GDP is expected to increase by 3.08% in 2015, as of the latest estimate, published on March 5, 2015. The Mexican economy continues to be heavily influenced by the U.S. economy, and therefore, deterioration in economic conditions in, or delays in the recovery of, the U.S. economy may hinder any recovery in Mexico.

Our results are affected by the economic conditions in the countries where we conduct operations. Most of these economies continue to be heavily influenced by the U.S. economy, and therefore, deterioration in economic conditions in the U.S. economy may affect these economies. Deterioration or prolonged periods of weak economic conditions in the countries where we conduct operations may have, and in the past have had, a negative effect on our company and a material adverse effect on our results and financial condition. Our business may also be significantly affected by the interest rates, inflation rates and exchange rates of the currencies of the countries in which we operate. Decreases in growth rates, periods of negative growth and/or increases in inflation or interest rates may result in lower demand for our products, lower real pricing of our products or a shift to lower margin products. In addition, an increase in interest rates would increase the cost to us of variable rate funding, which would have an adverse effect on our financial position.

Beginning in the fourth quarter of 2012 and through 2014, the exchange rate between the Mexican peso and the U.S. dollar fluctuated from a low of Ps. 11.98 per U.S. dollar, to a high of Ps. 14.79 per U.S. dollar. At December 31, 2014, the exchange rate (noon buying rate) was Ps. 14.75 to US$ 1.00. On April 17, 2015, the exchange rate was Ps. 15.3190 to US$ 1.00. See “Item 3. Key Information—Exchange Rate Information.” A depreciation of the Mexican peso or local currencies in the countries in which we operate relative to the U.S. dollar increases our cost of raw materials priced in U.S. dollars, including raw materials whose prices are set with reference to the U.S. dollar. In addition, a depreciation of the Mexican peso or local currencies in the countries in which we operate relative to the U.S. dollar will increase our U.S. dollar-denominated debt obligations, which could negatively affect our financial position and results. However, this effect could be offset by a corresponding appreciation of our U.S. dollar denominated cash position.

Operating Leverage

Companies with structural characteristics that result in margin expansion in excess of sales growth are referred to as having high “operating leverage.”

The operating subsidiaries of Coca-Cola FEMSA are engaged, to varying degrees, in capital-intensive activities. The high utilization of the installed capacity of the production facilities results in better fixed cost absorption, as increased output results in higher revenues without additional fixed costs. Absent significant increases in variable costs, gross profit margins will expand when production facilities are operated at higher utilization rates. Alternatively, higher fixed costs will result in lower gross profit margins in periods of lower output.

In addition, the commercial operations of Coca-Cola FEMSA are carried out through extensive distribution networks, the principal fixed assets of which are warehouses and trucks and are designed to handle large volumes of beverages. Fixed costs represent an important proportion of the total distribution expense of Coca-Cola FEMSA. Generally, the higher the volume that passes through the distribution system, the lower the fixed distribution cost as a percentage of the corresponding revenues. As a result, operating margins improve when the distribution capacity is operated at higher utilization rates. Alternatively, periods of decreased utilization because of lower volumes will negatively affect our operating margins.

FEMSA Comercio operations result in a low margin business with relatively fixed costs. These two characteristics make FEMSA Comercio a business with an operating margin that might be affected more easily by a change in sales levels.

Critical Accounting Judgments and Estimates

In the application of our accounting policies, which are described in Note 2.3 to our audited consolidated financial statements, management is required to make judgments, estimates and assumptions about the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. The estimates and associated assumptions are based on historical experience and other factors that are considered to be relevant. Actual results may differ from these estimates. The estimates and underlying assumptions are reviewed on an ongoing basis. Revisions to accounting estimates are recognized in the period in which the estimate is revised if the revision affects only that period or in the period of the revision and future periods if the revision affects both current and future periods.

The following are the key assumptions concerning the future and other key sources of estimation uncertainty at the end of the reporting period that have a significant risk of causing a material adjustment to the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities within the next financial year. Existing circumstances and assumptions about future developments, however, may change due to market changes or circumstances arising beyond our control. Such changes are reflected in the assumptions when they occur.

Impairment of indefinite lived intangible assets, goodwill and depreciable long-lived assets

Intangible assets with indefinite lives including goodwill are subject to annual impairment tests. Impairment exists when the carrying value of an asset or cash generating unit (CGU) exceeds its recoverable amount, which is the higher of its fair value less costs to sell and its value in use. The fair value less costs to sell calculation is based on available data from binding sales transactions in arm’s length transactions of similar assets or observable market prices less incremental costs for disposing of the asset. In order to determine whether such assets are impaired, we initially calculate an estimation of the value in use of the cash-generating units to which such assets have been allocated. The value in use calculation requires management to estimate the future cash flows expected to arise from the cash-generating unit and a suitable discount rate in order to calculate present value. We review annually the carrying value of our intangible assets with indefinite lives and goodwill for impairment based on recognized valuation techniques. While we believe that our estimates are reasonable, different assumptions regarding such estimates could materially affect our evaluations. Impairment losses are recognized in current earnings in the period the related impairment is determined. The key assumptions used to determine the recoverable amount for our CGUs, including a sensitivity analysis, are further explained in Notes 3.16 and 12 to our audited consolidated financial statements.

We assess at each reporting date whether there is an indication that an asset may be impaired. If any indication exists, or when annual impairment testing for an asset is required, we estimate the asset’s recoverable amount. When the carrying amount of an asset or CGU exceeds its recoverable amount, the asset is considered impaired and is written down to its recoverable amount. In assessing value in use, the estimated future cash flows are discounted to their present value using a pre-tax discount rate that reflects current market assessments of the time value of money and the risks specific to the asset. In determining fair value less costs to sell, recent market transactions are taken into account, if available. If no such transactions can be identified, an appropriate valuation model is used. These calculations are corroborated by valuation multiples, quoted share prices for publicly traded subsidiaries or other available fair value indicators.

Useful lives of property, plant and equipment and intangible assets with defined useful lives

Property, plant and equipment, including returnable bottles as they are expected to provide benefits over a period of more than one year, as well as intangible assets with defined useful lives, are depreciated/amortized over their estimated useful lives. We base our estimates on the experience of our technical personnel as well as on our experience in the industry for similar assets; see Notes 3.12, 3.14, 11 and 12 to our audited consolidated financial statements.

Post-employment and other long-term employee benefits

We regularly evaluate the reasonableness of the assumptions used in our post-employment and other long-term employee benefit computations. Information about such assumptions is described in Note 16 to our audited consolidated financial statements.

Income taxes

Deferred income tax assets and liabilities are determined based on the differences between the financial statement carrying amounts and the tax basis of assets and liabilities. We regularly review our deferred tax assets for recoverability, and record a deferred tax asset based on our judgment regarding the probability of historical taxable income continuing in the future, projected future taxable income and the expected timing of the reversals of existing temporary differences; see Note 24 to our audited consolidated financial statements.

Tax, labor and legal contingencies and provisions

We are subject to various claims and contingencies, related to tax, labor and legal proceedings as described in Note 25 to our audited consolidated financial statements. Due to their nature, such legal proceedings involve inherent uncertainties including, but not limited to, court rulings, negotiations between affected parties and governmental actions. Management periodically assesses the probability of loss for such contingencies and accrues a provision and/or discloses the relevant circumstances, as appropriate. If the potential loss of any claim or legal proceeding is considered probable and the amount can be reasonably estimated, we accrue a provision for the estimated loss. Management’s judgment must be exercised to determine the likelihood of such a loss and an estimate of the amount, due to the subjective nature of the loss.

Valuation of financial instruments

We are required to measure all derivative financial instruments at fair value. The fair values of derivative financial instruments are determined considering quoted prices in recognized markets. If such instruments are not traded, fair value is determined by applying techniques based upon technical models supported by sufficient reliable and verifiable data, recognized in the financial sector. We base our forward price curves upon market price quotations. Management believes that the chosen valuation techniques and assumptions used are appropriate in determining the fair value of financial instruments; see Note 20 to our audited consolidated financial statements.

Business combinations

Acquisitions of businesses are accounted for using the acquisition method. The consideration transferred in a business combination is measured at fair value, which is calculated as the sum of the acquisition-date fair values of the assets transferred by us, liabilities assumed by us to the former owners of the acquiree and the equity interests issued by us in exchange for control of the acquiree.

At the acquisition date, the identifiable assets acquired and the liabilities assumed are recognized at their fair value, except that:

•

Deferred tax assets or liabilities, and assets or liabilities related to employee benefit arrangements are recognized and measured in accordance with IAS 12, “Income Taxes” and IAS 19, “Employee Benefits”, respectively;

•

Liabilities or equity instruments related to share-based payment arrangements of the acquiree or to our share-based payment arrangements entered into to replace share-based payment arrangements of the acquiree are measured in accordance with IFRS 2, “Share-based Payment” at the acquisition date, see Note 3.24 to our audited consolidated financial statements; and

•

Assets (or disposal groups) that are classified as held for sale in accordance with IFRS 5, “Non-current Assets Held for Sale and Discontinued Operations” are measured in accordance with that Standard.

Management’s judgment must be exercised to determine the fair value of assets acquired and liabilities assumed.

Goodwill is measured as the excess of the sum of the consideration transferred, the amount of any non-controlling interests in the acquiree, and the fair value of our previously held equity interest in the acquiree (if any) over the net of the acquisition-date amounts of the identifiable assets acquired and the liabilities assumed. If, after reassessment, the net of the acquisition-date amounts of the identifiable assets acquired and liabilities assumed exceeds the sum of the consideration transferred, the amount of any non-controlling interests in the acquiree and the fair value of our previously held interest in the acquiree (if any), the excess is recognized immediately in profit or loss as a bargain purchase gain.

For each business combination, with respect to the non-controlling present ownership interests in the acquiree that entitle their holders to a proportionate share of net assets in liquidation, we elect whether to measure such interests at fair value or at the proportionate share of the acquiree’s identifiable net assets.

Investments in associates

If we hold, directly or indirectly, 20 per cent or more of the voting power of the investee, it is presumed that we have significant influence, unless it can be clearly demonstrated that this is not the case. If we hold, directly or indirectly, less than 20 per cent of the voting power of the investee, it is presumed that we do not have significant influence, unless such influence can be clearly demonstrated. Decisions regarding the propriety of utilizing the equity method of accounting for a less than 20 per cent-owned corporate investee require a careful evaluation of voting rights and their impact on our ability to exercise significant influence. Management considers the existence of the following circumstances which may indicate that we are in a position to exercise significant influence over a less than 20 per cent-owned corporate investee:

•

Representation on the board of directors or equivalent governing body of the investee;

•

Participation in policy-making processes, including participation in decisions about dividends or other distributions;

•

Material transactions between us and the investee;

•

Interchange of managerial personnel; or

•

Provision of essential technical information.

Management also considers the existence and effect of potential voting rights that are currently exercisable or currently convertible when assessing whether we have significant influence.

In addition, we evaluate certain indicators that provide evidence of significant influence, such as:

•

Whether the extent of our ownership is significant relative to other shareholders (i.e. a lack of concentration of other shareholders);

•

Whether our significant shareholders, fellow subsidiaries or officers hold additional investment in the investee; and

•

Whether we are part of significant investee committees, such as the executive committee or the finance committee.

Joint arrangements

An arrangement can be a joint arrangement even though not all of its parties have joint control of the arrangement. When we are a party to an arrangement we assess whether the contractual arrangement gives all the parties or a group of the parties, control of the arrangement collectively; joint control exists only when decisions about the relevant activities require the unanimous consent of the parties that control the arrangement collectively. Management needs to apply judgment when assessing whether all the parties, or a group of the parties, have joint control of an arrangement. When assessing joint control, management considers the following facts and circumstances:

•

Whether all the parties, or a group of the parties, control the arrangement, considering the definition of joint control, as described in note 3.11.2 to our audited consolidated financial statements; and

•

Whether decisions about the relevant activities require the unanimous consent of all the parties, or of a group of the parties.

As mentioned elsewhere in this report and in Note 10 to our audited consolidated financial statements, on January 25, 2013, Coca-Cola FEMSA closed the acquisition of 51% of CCFPI. Coca-Cola FEMSA jointly controls CCFPI with The Coca-Cola Company. This is based on the following factors: (i) during the initial four-year period, some relevant activities require joint approval between Coca-Cola FEMSA and The Coca-Cola Company; and (ii) potential voting rights to acquire the remaining 49% of CCFPI are not likely to be exercised in the foreseeable future due to the fact that the call option was “out of the money” as of December 31, 2014 and 2013. See “Item 4. Information on the Company—Corporate Background.”

Venezuela exchange rates

As is further explained in Note 3.3 to our audited consolidated financial statements, the exchange rate used to account for foreign currency denominated monetary items arising in Venezuela, and also the exchange rate used to translate the financial statements of our Venezuelan subsidiary for group reporting purposes are both key sources of estimation uncertainty in preparing our consolidated financial statements.

Future Impact of Recently Issued Accounting Standards not yet in Effect

We have not applied the following new and revised IFRS and IAS that have been issued but were not yet effective as of December 31, 2014:

•

IFRS 9, “Financial Instruments”: On July 2014, the IASB issued the final version of IFRS 9 which reflects all phases of the financial instruments project and replaces IAS 39, “ Financial Instruments: Recognition and Measurement,” and all previous versions of IFRS 9. The standard introduces new requirements for classification and measurement, impairment and hedge accounting. IFRS 9 is effective for annual periods beginning on or after January 1, 2018, with early application permitted. The transition to IFRS 9 differs in its requirements and is partly retrospective and partly prospective. Early application of previous versions of IFRS 9 (2009, 2010 and 2013) is permitted if the date of initial application is before February 1, 2015. We have not early adopted this IFRS and we have yet to complete our evaluation of whether it will have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements.

•

IFRS 15, “Revenue from Contracts with Customers was issued in May 2014 and applies to annual reporting periods beginning on or after January 1, 2017, although earlier application is permitted. Revenue is recognized as control is passed, either over time or at a point in time. The standard outlines a single comprehensive model for entities to use in accounting for revenue arising from contracts with customers and supersedes most current revenue recognition guidance, including industry—specific guidance. In applying the revenue model to contracts within its scope, an entity will: 1) Identify the contract(s) with a customer; 2) Identify the performance obligations in the contract; 3) Determine the transaction price; 4) Allocate the transaction price to the performance obligations in the contract; 5) Recognize revenue when (or as) the entity satisfies a performance obligation. Also, an entity needs to disclose sufficient information to enable users of financial statements to understand the nature, amount, timing and uncertainty of revenue and cash flows arising from contracts with customers. We have yet to complete our evaluation of whether these changes will have a significant impact on our consolidated financial statements.

•

Amendments to IAS 16 and IAS 38, “Clarification of Acceptable Methods of Depreciation and Amortizacion”: The amendments clarify the principle in IAS 16 and IAS 38 that revenue reflects a pattern of economic benefits that are generated from operating a business (of which the asset is part) rather than the economic benefits that are consumed through use of the asset. As a result, a revenue-based method cannot be used to depreciate property, plant and equipment and may only be used in very limited circumstances to amortise intangible assets. The amendments are effective prospectively for annual periods beginning on or after January 1, 2016, with early adoption permitted. These amendments are not expected to have any impact on us given that we have not used a revenue-based method to depreciate our non-current assets.

•

Amendments to IFRS 11, “Joint Arrangements; Accounting for acquisitions of interests”: The amendments require that a joint operator accounting for the acquisition of an interest in a joint operation, in which the activity of the joint operation constitutes a business, must apply the relevant IFRS 3 principles for business combinations accounting. The amendments also clarify that a previously held interest in a joint operation is not remeasured on the acquisition of an additional interest in the same joint operation while joint control is retained. The amendments apply to both the acquisition of the initial interest in a joint operation and the acquisition of any additional interests in the same joint operation and are prospectively effective for annual periods beginning on or after January 1, 2016, with early adoption permitted. We anticipate that there will be no impact on the financial statements from the adoption of these amendments because we do not have any investments in a joint operation.

Operating Results

The following table sets forth our consolidated income statement under IFRS for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013, and 2012:


				Year Ended December 31,
	2014⁽¹⁾			2014			2013			2012
	(in millions of U.S. dollars and Mexican pesos)
Net sales	$	17,816		Ps.	262,779		Ps.	256,804		Ps.	236,922
Other operating revenues		45			670			1,293			1,387

Total revenues		17,861			263,449			258,097			238,309
Cost of goods sold		10,392			153,278			148,443			137,009

Gross profit		7,469			110,171			109,654			101,300
Administrative expenses		694			10,244			9,963			9,552
Selling expenses		4,679			69,016			69,574			62,086
Other income		74			1,098			651			1,745
Other expenses		(86	)		(1,277	)		(1,439	)		(1,973	)
Interest expense		(454	)		(6,701	)		(4,331	)		(2,506	)
Interest income		58			862			1,225			783
Foreign exchange (loss), net		(61	)		(903	)		(724	)		(176	)
Monetary position (loss), net		(22	)		(319	)		(427	)		(13	)
Market value gain on financial instruments		5			73			8			8

Income before income taxes and share of the profit of associates and joint ventures accounted for using the equity method		1,610			23,744			25,080			27,530
Income taxes		424			6,253			7,756			7,949
Share of the profit of associates and joint ventures accounted for using the equity method, net of taxes		348			5,139			4,831			8,470

Consolidated net income	$	1,534		Ps.	22,630		Ps.	22,155		Ps.	28,051

Controlling interest net income		1,132			16,701			15,922			20,707
Non-controlling interest net income		402			5,929			6,233			7,344

Consolidated net income	$	1,534		Ps.	22,630		Ps.	22,155		Ps.	28,051

(1)	Translation to U.S. dollar amounts at an exchange rate of Ps. 14.7500 to US$ 1.00, provided solely for the convenience of the reader.

The following table sets forth certain operating results by reportable segment under IFRS for each of our segments for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012.


	Year Ended December 31,
	Percentage Growth (Decrease)
	2014			2013			2012			2014 vs. 2013			2013 vs. 2012
Net sales
Coca-Cola FEMSA		Ps. 146,948			Ps. 155,175			Ps. 146,907			(5.3%	)		5.6%
FEMSA Comercio		109,624			97,572			86,433			12.4%			12.9%
Total revenues
Coca-Cola FEMSA		147,298			156,011			147,739			(5.6%	)		5.6%
FEMSA Comercio		109,624			97,572			86,433			12.4%			12.9%
Cost of goods sold
Coca-Cola FEMSA		78,916			83,076			79,109			(5.0%	)		5.0%
FEMSA Comercio		70,238			62,986			56,183			11.5%			12.1%
Gross profit
Coca-Cola FEMSA		68,382			72,935			68,630			(6.2%	)		6.3%
FEMSA Comercio		39,386			34,586			30,250			13.9%			14.3%
Administrative expenses
Coca-Cola FEMSA		6,385			6,487			6,217			(1.6%	)		4.3%
FEMSA Comercio		2,042			1,883			1,666			8.4%			13.0%
Selling expenses
Coca-Cola FEMSA		40,464			44,828			40,223			(9.7%	)		11.4%
FEMSA Comercio		28,492			24,707			21,686			15.3%			13.9%
Depreciation
Coca-Cola FEMSA		6,072			6,371			5,078			(4.7%	)		25.5%
FEMSA Comercio		2,779			2,328			1,940			19.4%			20.0%
Gross margin⁽¹⁾⁽²⁾
Coca-Cola FEMSA		46.4	%		46.7	%		46.5	%		(0.3p.p.	)		0.2p.p.
FEMSA Comercio		35.9	%		35.4	%		35.0	%		0.5p.p.			0.4p.p.
Share of the profit of associates and joint ventures accounted for using the equity method, net of taxes
Coca-Cola FEMSA		(125	)		289			180			(143.3%	)⁽⁴⁾		60.6%
FEMSA Comercio		37			11			(23	)		236.4%			147.8%
CB Equity⁽³⁾		5,244			4,587			8,311			14.3%			(44.8%	)

(1)	Gross margin is calculated with reference to total revenues.

(2)	As used herein, p.p. refers to a percentage point increase (or decrease) contrasted with a straight percentage increase (or decrease).

(3)	CB Equity holds Heineken N.V. and Heineken Holding N.V. shares.

(4)	Reflects the percentage decrease between the gain of ps. 289 million recorded in 2013 and the loss of ps. 125 million recorded in 2014.

Results from our Operations for the Year Ended December 31, 2014 Compared to the Year Ended December 31, 2013

FEMSA Consolidated

FEMSA’s consolidated total revenues increased 2.1% to Ps. 263,449 million in 2014 compared to Ps. 258,097 million in 2013. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s total revenues decreased 5.6% to Ps. 147,298 million, driven by the negative translation effect resulting from using the SICAD II exchange rate to translate the Venezuelan operation. FEMSA Comercio’s revenues increased 12.4% to Ps. 109,624 million, mainly driven by the opening of 1,132 net new stores combined with an average increase of 2.7% in same-store sales.

Consolidated gross profit increased 0.5% to Ps. 110,171 million in 2014 compared to Ps. 109,654 million in 2013. Gross margin decreased 70 basis points to 41.8% of consolidated total revenues compared to 2013, reflecting margin contraction at Coca-Cola FEMSA.

Consolidated administrative expenses increased 2.8% to Ps. 10,244 million in 2014 compared to Ps. 9,963 million in 2013. As a percentage of total revenues, consolidated administrative expenses remained stable at 3.9% in 2014.

Consolidated selling expenses decreased 0.8% to Ps. 69,016 million in 2014 as compared to Ps. 69,574 million in 2013. As a percentage of total revenues, selling expenses decreased 80 percentage points, from 26.9% in 2013 to 26.1% in 2014.

Some of our subsidiaries pay management fees to us in consideration for corporate services we provide to them. These fees are recorded as administrative expenses in the respective business segments. Our subsidiaries’ payments of management fees are eliminated in consolidation and, therefore, have no effect on our consolidated operating expenses.

Other income mainly includes gains on sales of shares and long-lived assets and the write-off of certain contingencies. During 2014, other income increased to Ps. 1,098 million from Ps. 651 million in 2013, primarily driven by the write-off of certain contingencies.

Other expenses mainly include disposal and impairment of long-lived assets, contingencies, as well as their subsequent interest and penalties, severance payments derived from restructuring programs and donations. During 2014, other expenses decreased to Ps. 1,277 million from Ps. 1,439 million in 2013.

Net financing expenses increased to Ps. 6,988 million from Ps. 4,249 million in 2013, driven by an interest expense of Ps. 6,701 million in 2014 compared to Ps. 4,331 million in 2013 resulting from higher financing expenses related to bonds issued in 2014 by FEMSA and Coca-Cola FEMSA.

Our accounting provision for income taxes in 2014 was Ps. 6,253 million, as compared to Ps. 7,756 million in 2013, resulting in an effective tax rate of 26.3% in 2014, as compared to 30.9% in 2013, mainly driven by a lower effective tax rate registered during 2014 in Coca-Cola FEMSA.

Share of the profit of associates and joint ventures accounted for using the equity method, net of taxes, increased 6.4% to Ps. 5,139 million in 2014 compared with Ps. 4,831 million in 2013, mainly driven by an increase in FEMSA’s participation in Heineken results.

Consolidated net income was Ps. 22,630 million in 2014 compared to Ps. 22,155 million in 2013, resulting from a lower tax rate combined with an increase in FEMSA’s 20% participation in Heineken’s results, which more than compensated for higher financing expenses related to bonds issued in 2014 by Coca-Cola FEMSA and FEMSA. Controlling interest amounted to Ps. 16,701 million in 2014 compared to Ps. 15,922 million in 2013. Controlling interest in 2014 per FEMSA Unit was Ps. 4.67 (US$ 3.16 per ADS).

Coca-Cola FEMSA

Coca-Cola FEMSA’s reported consolidated total revenues decreased 5.6% to Ps. 147,298 million in 2014 driven by the negative translation effect resulting from using the SICAD II exchange rate to translate the results of its Venezuelan operation. Excluding the recently integrated territories of Companhia Fluminense and Spaipa in Brazil and the integration of Grupo Yoli in Mexico, total revenues were Ps. 134,088. On a currency neutral basis and excluding the non-comparable effect of Fluminense and Spaipa in Brazil, and Grupo Yoli in Mexico, total revenues grew 24.7%, driven by average price per unit case growth in most of our territories and volume growth in Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela and Central America.

Total sales volume increased 6.6% to 3,417.3 million unit cases in 2014, as compared to 2013. Excluding the integration of Grupo Yoli in Mexico and Fluminense and Spaipa in Brazil, volumes declined 0.7% to 3,182.8 million unit cases, mainly due to the volume contraction originated by the price increases implemented due to the excise tax in Mexico.

On the same basis, the bottled water portfolio grew 5.0%, driven by Crystal in Brazil, Aquarius and Bonaqua in Argentina, Nevada in Venezuela and Manantial in Colombia. The still beverage category grew 1.9%, mainly driven by the performance of the Jugos del Valle line of business in Colombia, Venezuela and Brazil, and Powerade across most of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s territories. These increases partially compensated the performance of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s sparkling beverage category which declined 0.9% driven by the volume contraction in Mexico and a 3.5% volume decline in its bulk water business.

Consolidated average price per unit case decreased 13.2% reaching Ps. 40.92 in 2014, as compared to Ps. 47.15 in 2013. This decline was driven by the previously mentioned negative translation effect in Venezuela. In local currency, average price per unit case increased in all of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s territories, with the exception of Colombia.

Gross profit decreased 6.2% to Ps. 68,382 million in 2014. This decline was driven by the previously mentioned negative translation effect in Venezuela. In local currency, lower sweetener and PET prices in most of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s operations were offset by the depreciation of the average exchange rate of the Argentine peso, the Brazilian reais, the Colombian peso and the Mexican peso as applied to Coca-Cola FEMSA’s U.S. dollar-denominated raw material costs. Reported gross margin reached 46.4% in 2014.

For Coca-Cola FEMSA the component of cost of goods sold include raw materials (principally concentrate, sweeteners and packaging materials), depreciation costs attributable to Coca-Cola FEMSA’s production facilities, wages and other employment costs associated with labor force employed at its production facilities and certain overhead costs. Concentrate prices are determined as a percentage of the retail price of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s products in the local currency, net of applicable taxes. Packaging materials, mainly PET and aluminum, and High Fructose Corn Syrup (“HFCS”), used as a sweetener in some countries, are denominated in U.S. dollars.

Administrative and selling expenses as a percentage of total revenues decreased 110 basis points to 31.8% in 2014 as compared to 2013. Administrative and selling expenses in absolute terms decreased 8.7% mainly as a result of the lower contribution of Venezuela, which was driven by the previously mentioned negative translation effect. In local currency, operating expenses decreased as a percentage of revenues in most of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s operations, despite of continued marketing investments across its territories to support Coca-Cola FEMSA’s marketplace execution and bolster its returnable presentation base, higher labor costs in Venezuela and Argentina, and higher freight cost in Brazil and Venezuela.

As used by Coca-Cola FEMSA, the term “comprehensive financing result” refers to the combined financial effects of net interest expenses, net financial foreign exchange gains or losses, and net gains or losses on monetary position from the hyperinflationary countries in which Coca-Cola FEMSA operates. Net financial foreign exchange gains or losses represent the impact of changes in foreign-exchange rates on financial assets or liabilities denominated in currencies other than local currencies and gains or losses resulting from derivative financial instruments. A financial foreign exchange loss arises if a liability is denominated in a foreign currency that appreciates relative to the local currency between the date the liability is incurred or the beginning of the period, whichever comes first, and the date it is repaid or the end of the period, whichever comes first, as the appreciation of the foreign currency results in an increase in the amount of local currency, which must be exchanged to repay the specified amount of the foreign currency liability.

Comprehensive financing result in 2014 recorded an expense of Ps. 6,422 million as compared to an expense of Ps. 3,773 million in 2013. This increase was mainly driven by (i) a higher interest expenses due to a larger debt position and (ii) a foreign exchange loss mainly as a result of the depreciation of the end-of-period exchange rate of the Mexican peso during the year, as applied to a higher US dollar-denominated net debt position.

During 2014, income tax, as a percentage of income before taxes, was 25.8% as compared to 33.3% in 2013. The lower effective tax rate registered during 2014 is mainly related to (i) a smaller contribution from our Venezuelan subsidiary (resulting from the use of the SICAD II rate for translation purposes) which carries a higher effective tax rate, (ii) the inflationary tax effects in Venezuela, and (iii) a one-time benefit resulting from the settlement of certain contingent tax liabilities under the tax amnesty program offered by the Brazilian tax authorities, which was registered during the third quarter of 2014.

Coca-Cola FEMSA’s consolidated net controlling interest income reached Ps. 10,542 million in 2014 as compared to Ps. 11,543 million in 2013. Earnings per share (“EPS”) in the full year of 2014 were 5.09 (Ps. 50.86 per ADS) computed on the basis of 2,072.9 million shares outstanding (each ADS represents 10 local shares).

FEMSA Comercio

FEMSA Comercio total revenues increased 12.4% to Ps. 109,624 million in 2014 compared to Ps. 97,572 million in 2013, primarily as a result of the opening of 1,132 net new stores during 2014, together with an average increase in same-store sales of 2.7%. As of December 31, 2014, there were a total of 12,853 stores. FEMSA Comercio same-store sales increased an average of 2.7% compared to 2013, driven by a 2.7% increase in average customer ticket while store traffic remained stable.

Cost of goods sold increased 11.5% to Ps. 70,238 million in 2014, below total revenue growth, compared with Ps. 62,986 million in 2013. Gross margin expanded 50 percentage points to reach 35.9% of total revenues. This increase reflects a more effective collaboration and execution with our key supplier partners, including higher and more efficient joint use of promotion-related resources, as well as objective-based incentives.

Administrative expenses increased 8.4% to Ps. 2,042 million in 2014, compared with Ps. 1,883 million in 2013; however, as a percentage of sales, they remained stable at 1.9%. Selling expenses increased 15.3% to Ps. 28,492 million in 2014 compared with Ps. 24,707 million in 2013. The increase in operating expenses was driven by (i) the strong growth in new stores, (ii) expenses related to the incorporation of the drugstore and quick-service restaurant operations and (iii) the strengthening of FEMSA Comercio’s business and organizational structure in preparation for the growth of new operations, particularly drugstores.

Results from our Operations for the Year Ended December 31, 2013 Compared to the Year Ended December 31, 2012

FEMSA Consolidated

FEMSA’s consolidated total revenues increased 8.3% to Ps. 258,097 million in 2013 compared to Ps. 238,309 million in 2012. Both beverages and retail operations contributed positively to this revenue growth. Coca-Cola FEMSA’s total revenues increased 5.6% to Ps. 156,011 million, driven by the integration of the beverage divisions of Grupo Fomento Queretano and Grupo Yoli in Mexico and Companhia Fluminense and Spaipa in Brazil. FEMSA Comercio’s revenues increased 12.9% to Ps. 97,572 million, mainly driven by the opening of 1,120 net new stores combined with an average increase of 2.4% in same-store sales.

Consolidated gross profit increased 8.2% to Ps. 109,654 million in 2013 compared to Ps. 101,300 million in 2012. Gross margin remained stable compared to 2012 at 42.5% of consolidated total revenues.

Consolidated administrative expenses increased 4.3% to Ps. 9,963 million in 2013 compared to Ps. 9,552 million in 2012. As a percentage of total revenues, consolidated administrative expenses decreased from 4.0% in 2012 to 3.9% in 2013.

Consolidated selling expenses increased 12.1% to Ps. 69,574 million in 2013 as compared to Ps. 62,086 million in 2012. This increase was attributable to greater selling expenses at Coca-Cola FEMSA and FEMSA Comercio. As a percentage of total revenues, selling expenses increased 90 basis points, from 26.0% in 2012 to 26.9% in 2013.

Other income mainly includes gains on sales of shares and long-lived assets and the write-off of certain contingencies. During 2013, other income decreased to Ps. 651 million from Ps. 1,745 million in 2012, due to a tough comparison primarily driven by the net effect of the sale of Quimiproductos in the fourth quarter of 2012.

Other expenses mainly include disposal and impairment of long-lived assets, contingencies, as well as their subsequent interest and penalties, severance payments derived from restructuring programs and donations. During 2013, other expenses decreased to Ps. 1,439 million from Ps. 1,973 million in 2012.

Net financing expenses increased to Ps. 4,249 million from Ps. 1,904 million in 2012, driven by an interest expense of Ps. 4,331 million in 2013 compared to Ps. 2,506 million in 2012 resulting from higher financing expenses related to bonds issued by FEMSA and Coca-Cola FEMSA.

Our accounting provision for income taxes in 2013 was Ps. 7,756 million, as compared to Ps. 7,949 million in 2012, resulting in an effective tax rate of 30.9% in 2013, as compared to 28.9% in 2012.

Share of the profit of associates and joint ventures accounted for using the equity method, net of taxes, decreased 42.9% to Ps. 4,831 million in 2013 compared with Ps. 8,470 million in 2012, mainly driven by a tough comparable base caused by a non-cash exceptional gain related to the revaluation of certain equity interests held by Heineken in Asia in the fourth quarter of 2012.

Consolidated net income was Ps. 22,155 million in 2013 compared to Ps. 28,051 million in 2012, resulting from a tough comparable base caused by a non-cash exceptional gain related to the revaluation of certain equity interests held by Heineken in Asia in the fourth quarter of 2012, as well as by higher financing expenses, which were modestly offset by the growth in income from operations. Controlling interest net income amounted to Ps. 15,922 million in 2013 compared to Ps. 20,707 million in 2012, which difference was also due principally to a tough comparable base caused by a non-cash exceptional gain related to the revaluation of certain equity interests held by Heineken in Asia in the fourth quarter of 2012. Controlling interest net income per FEMSA Unit in 2013 was Ps. 4.45 (US$ 3.40 per ADS).

Coca-Cola FEMSA

Coca-Cola FEMSA consolidated total revenues increased 5.6% to Ps. 156,011 million in 2013, as compared to 2012. Revenue growth of 6.9% in Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Mexico and Central America division (including Venezuela), including the integration of Grupo Fomento Queretano and Grupo Yoli in its Mexican operations, coupled with a 4.6% growth in its South America division, including the integration of Spaipa and Companhia Fluminense in Brazil, compensated for the negative translation effect generated by the devaluation of the currencies in Coca-Cola FEMSA’s South America division. Excluding the recently integrated territories in Mexico and Brazil, total revenues reached Ps. 149,210 million, an increase of 1.0% with respect to 2012. On a currency neutral basis and excluding the non-comparable effect of Grupo Fomento Queretano, Grupo Yoli, Spaipa and Companhia Fluminense, total revenues increased 16.3% in 2013 as compared to 2012.

Total sales volume increased 5.2% to 3,204.6 million unit cases in 2013, as compared to 2012. Excluding the integration of Grupo Fomento Queretano and Grupo Yoli in Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Mexican operations and Spaipa and Companhia Fluminense in its Brazilian operations, volumes remained flat at 3,055.2 million unit cases in 2013. On the same basis, the still beverage category grew 8.5%, mainly driven by the performance of the Jugos del Valle line of business, Powerade and FUZE tea across Coca-Cola FEMSA’s territories. In addition and excluding the newly integrated territories, Coca-Cola FEMSA’s bottled water portfolio grew 5.3%, driven by the performance of Ciel, Bonaqua, and Brisa brands. These increases compensated for flat volumes in Coca-Cola FEMSA’s sparkling beverage category and a 2.2% decrease in its bulk water business.

Consolidated average price per unit case decreased 0.3%, reaching Ps. 47.15 in 2013, as compared to Ps. 47.27 in 2012, mainly due to the negative translation effect resulting from the depreciation of the currencies of our South America division, including Venezuela. In local currency, average price per unit case increased in most of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s territories mainly driven by price increases implemented during the year.

Gross profit increased 6.3% to Ps. 72,935 million in 2013, as compared to 2012. Cost of goods sold increased 5.0%, mainly as a result of lower sugar prices in most of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s territories in combination with the appreciation of the average exchange rate of the Mexican peso, which compensated for the depreciation of the average exchange rate of the Venezuelan bolivar, the Argentine peso, the Brazilian reais and the Colombian peso as applied to Coca-Cola FEMSA’s U.S. dollar-denominated raw material costs. Gross margin reached 46.7%, an increase of 20 basis points as compared to 2012.

For Coca-Cola FEMSA, the components of cost of goods sold include raw materials (principally concentrate, sweeteners and packaging materials), depreciation costs attributable to Coca-Cola FEMSA’s production facilities, wages and other employment costs associated with the labor force employed at its production facilities and certain overhead costs. Concentrate prices are determined as a percentage of the retail price of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s products in local currency net of applicable taxes. Packaging materials, mainly PET and aluminum, and HFCS, used as a sweetener in some countries, are denominated in U.S. dollars.

Administrative and selling expenses as a percentage of total revenues increased 150 basis points to 32.9% in 2013 as compared to 2012. Administrative and selling expenses in absolute terms increased 10.5%, mainly as a result of the integration of Grupo Fomento Queretano and Grupo Yoli in Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Mexican operations and Spaipa and Companhia Fluminense in its Brazilian operations. In addition, administrative and selling expenses grew as a consequence of higher labor and freight costs in Coca-Cola FEMSA’s South America division and continued marketing investments to support Coca-Cola FEMSA’s marketplace execution and bolster its returnable packaging base across its territories.

As used by Coca-Cola FEMSA, the term “comprehensive financing result” refers to the combined financial effects of net interest expense, net financial foreign exchange gains or losses, and net gains or losses on monetary position from its Venezuelan operations, as the only hyperinflationary country in which Coca-Cola FEMSA operates. Net financial foreign exchange gains or losses represent the impact of changes in foreign-exchange rates on financial assets or liabilities denominated in currencies other than local currencies and gains or losses resulting from derivative financial instruments. A financial foreign exchange loss arises if a liability is denominated in a foreign currency that appreciates relative to the local currency between the date the liability is incurred or the beginning of the period, whichever comes first, and the date it is repaid or the end of the period, whichever comes first, as the appreciation of the foreign currency results in an increase in the amount of local currency, which must be exchanged to repay the specified amount of the foreign currency liability.

Comprehensive financing result for Coca-Cola FEMSA in 2013 recorded an expense of Ps. 3,773 million as compared to an expense of Ps. 1,246 million in 2012. This increase was mainly driven by higher interest expense due to a larger debt position and a foreign exchange loss mainly as a result of the depreciation of the end-of-period exchange rate of the Mexican peso during the year as applied to a higher U.S. dollar-denominated net debt position.

Income taxes decreased to Ps. 5,731 million in 2013, from Ps. 6,274 million in 2012. In 2013, taxes as a percentage of income before taxes and share of profit of associates and joint ventures accounted for using the equity method were 33.3%, as compared to 31.4% in 2012. The difference was mainly driven by lower effective tax rates imposed in 2012 resulting from a tax benefit related to interest on capital derived from a dividend declared by Coca-Cola FEMSA’s Brazilian subsidiary.

On January 25, 2013, as part of Coca-Cola FEMSA’s efforts to expand its geographic reach, it acquired a 51% non-controlling majority stake in CCFPI. Coca-Cola FEMSA currently recognizes the results of CCFPI using the equity method and reflects such results in its Mexico and Central America division. In 2013, Coca-Cola FEMSA recognized equity income of Ps. 108 million regarding its economic interest in CCFPI. Coca-Cola FEMSA reports its equity method investment in CCFPI as a separate reporting segment. For further information see Note 26 to our audited consolidated financial statements.

Coca-Cola FEMSA’s consolidated net controlling interest income decreased 13.4% to Ps. 11,543 million in 2013 as compared to 2012. Earnings per share in 2013 were Ps. 5.61 (Ps. 56.14 per Coca-Cola FEMSA ADS) computed on the basis of 2,056.0 million shares outstanding (each Coca-Cola FEMSA ADS represents 10 Coca-Cola FEMSA Series L shares) as of December 31, 2013.

FEMSA Comercio

FEMSA Comercio total revenues increased 12.9% to Ps. 97,572 million in 2013 compared to Ps. 86,433 million in 2012, primarily as a result of the opening of 1,120 net new stores during 2013, together with an average increase in same-store sales of 2.4%. As of December 31, 2013, there were a total of 11,721 stores in Mexico. FEMSA Comercio same-store sales increased an average of 2.4% compared to 2012, driven by a 2.8% increase in average customer ticket that more than offset a 0.5% decrease in store traffic.

Cost of goods sold increased 12.1% to Ps. 62,986 million in 2013, below total revenue growth, compared with Ps. 56,183 million in 2012. As a result, gross profit reached Ps. 34,586 million in 2013, which represented a 14.3% increase from 2012. Gross margin expanded 40 basis points to reach 35.4% of total revenues. This increase reflects (i) a positive mix shift due to the growth of higher margin categories, and (ii) a more effective collaboration and execution with our key supplier partners, including higher and more efficient joint use of promotion-related marketing resources, as well as objective-based incentives.

Administrative expenses increased 13.0% to Ps. 1,883 million in 2013, compared with Ps. 1,666 million in 2012; however, as a percentage of sales, they remained stable at 1.9%. Selling expenses increased 13.9% to Ps. 24,707 million in 2013 compared with Ps. 21,686 million in 2012, largely driven by the growing number of stores and distribution centers and specialized routes as well as incremental expenses related to new initiatives.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

Liquidity

Each of our sub-holding companies generally finances its operational and capital requirements on an independent basis. As of December 31, 2014, 81% of our outstanding consolidated total indebtedness was at the level of our sub-holding companies. This structure is attributable, in part, to the inclusion of third parties in the capital structure of Coca-Cola FEMSA. Anticipating liquidity needs for general corporate purposes, in May 2013 we issued US$ 300 million in aggregate principal amount of 2.875% Senior Notes due 2023 and US$ 700 million in aggregate principal amount of 4.375% Senior Notes due 2043. In addition, in November 2013 and January 2014, Coca-Cola FEMSA issued US$ 1,000 million in aggregate principal amount of 2.375% Senior Notes due 2018, US$ 900 million in aggregate principal amount of 3.875% Senior Notes due 2023 and US$ 600 million in aggregate principal amount of 5.250% Senior Notes due 2043. We may decide to incur additional indebtedness at our holding company in the future to finance the operations and capital requirements of our subsidiaries or significant acquisitions, investments or capital expenditures. As a holding company, we depend on dividends and other distributions from our subsidiaries to service our indebtedness and to finance our operations and capital requirements.

We continuously evaluate opportunities to pursue acquisitions or engage in joint ventures or other transactions. We would expect to finance any significant future transactions with a combination of cash from operations, long-term indebtedness and capital stock.

Our principal source of liquidity has generally been cash generated from our operations. We have traditionally been able to rely on cash generated from operations because a significant majority of the sales of Coca-Cola FEMSA and FEMSA Comercio are on a cash or short-term credit basis, and OXXO stores are able to finance a significant portion of their initial and ongoing inventories with supplier credit. Our principal use of cash has generally been for capital expenditure programs, debt repayment and dividend payments. In our opinion, our working capital is sufficient for our present requirements.

Our sub-holding companies generally incur short-term indebtedness in the event that they are temporarily unable to finance operations or meet capital requirements with cash from operations. A significant decline in the business of any of our sub-holding companies may affect the sub-holding company’s ability to fund its capital requirements. A significant and prolonged deterioration in the economies in which we operate or in our businesses may affect our ability to obtain short-term and long-term credit or to refinance existing indebtedness on terms satisfactory to us.

The following is a summary of the principal sources and uses of cash for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012, from our consolidated statement of cash flows:

Principal Sources and Uses of Cash

Years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012

(in millions of Mexican pesos)


	2014			2013			2012
Net cash flows provided by operating activities		Ps. 37,364			Ps. 28,758			Ps. 30,785
Net cash flows (used in) investing activities		(15,608	)		(55,231	)		(14,643	)
Net cash flows (used in) provided by financing activities		(9,288	)		20,584			(3,418	)
Dividends paid		(3,152	)		(16,493	)		(9,186	)

Principal Sources and Uses of Cash for the Year ended December 31, 2014 Compared to the Year Ended December 31, 2013

Our net cash generated by operating activities was Ps. 37,364 million for the year ended December 31, 2014 compared to Ps. 28,758 million generated by operating activities for the year ended December 31, 2013, an increase of Ps. 8,606 million. This increase was mainly the result of increased financing from suppliers in the amount of Ps. 6,393 million, which was partially offset by increased other long-term liabilities of Ps. 2,199 million due to contingencies payments. Also, there was a decrease of income taxes paid of Ps. 3,039 million due to the decline of taxable income over the prior year, a decrease of Ps. 419 in inventories, and finally, there was an increase in accounts receivable of Ps. 3,014 which was offset by other current financial assets in the amount of Ps. 3,244 million. The increase was also partially driven by an increase of Ps. 604 million in our cash flow from operating activities before changes in operating accounts due to our increased sales on a cash basis.

Our net cash used in investing activities was Ps. 15,608 million for the year ended December 31, 2014 compared to Ps. 55,231 million used in investing activities for the year ended December 31, 2013, a decrease of Ps. 39,623 million. This was primarily the result of a decrease in acquisition-related costs in the amount of Ps. 40,675 million, given that Coca-Cola FEMSA did not allocate a significant part of its cash to acquire bottling operations as compared to the prior year. This was partially offset by a decrease of Ps. 1,388 million in 2014 of cash inflows, because of fewer cash inflows from our held to maturity investments.

Our net cash used in financing activities was Ps. 9,288 million for the year ended December 31, 2014 compared to Ps. 20,584 million generated by financing activities for the year ended December 31, 2013, a decrease of Ps. 29,872 million. This decrease was primarily due to lower proceeds from bank borrowings in 2014 of Ps. 5,354 million as compared to Ps. 78,907 million in 2013, offset by payments on bank loans of Ps. 5,721 million in 2014 compared to Ps. 39,962 million in 2013 as well as lower dividend payments of Ps. 3,152 million compared to Ps. 16,493 million in 2013. Finally, this was partially offset by an increase of derivative financial instruments costs of Ps. 2,964 million.

Principal Sources and Uses of Cash for the Year ended December 31, 2013 Compared to the Year Ended December 31, 2012

Our net cash generated by operating activities was Ps. 28,758 million for the year ended December 31, 2013 compared to Ps. 30,785 million for the year ended December 31, 2012, a decrease of Ps. 2,027 million. This decrease was primarily the result of lower financing from suppliers in the amount of Ps. 3,316 million as well as higher amounts of income taxes paid of Ps. 934 million because of higher levels of taxable income, and increased accounts receivable of Ps. 1,202 million. This was partially offset by an increase of Ps. 2,900 million in our cash flow from operating activities before changes in operating accounts due to our increased sales on a cash basis.

Our net cash used in investing activities was Ps. 55,231 million for the year ended December 31, 2013 compared to Ps. 14,643 million for the year ended December 31, 2012, an increase of Ps. 40,588 million. This increase was primarily due to the acquisition of Grupo Yoli for Ps. 1,046 million, Companhia Fluminense for Ps. 4,648 million, Spaipa for Ps. 23,056 million, other acquisitions of Ps. 3,021 million and an investment in shares of Coca-Cola Bottlers Philippines for Ps. 8,904 million in 2013.

Our net cash generated by financing activities was Ps. 20,584 million for the year ended December 31, 2013 compared to net cash used in financing activities of Ps. 3,418 million for the year ended December 31, 2012, an increase of Ps. 24,002 million. This increase was primarily due to higher proceeds from bank borrowings in 2013 of Ps. 78,907 million as compared to Ps. 14,048 million in 2012, offset by higher amounts of payments on bank loans of Ps. 39,962 million in 2013 as compared to Ps. 5,872 million in 2012 as well as higher dividend payments of Ps. 16,493 million in 2013 compared to Ps. 9,186 million in 2012. Cash generated by financing activities was primarily used to finance our business acquisitions.

Consolidated Total Indebtedness

Our consolidated total indebtedness as of December 31, 2014 was Ps. 84,488 million compared to Ps. 76,748 million in 2013 and Ps. 37,342 million as of December 31, 2012. Short-term debt (including maturities of long-term debt) and long-term debt were Ps. 1,553 million and Ps. 82,935 million, respectively, as of December 31, 2014, as compared to Ps. 3,827 million and Ps. 72,921 million, respectively, as of December 31, 2013, and Ps. 8,702 million and Ps. 28,640 million, respectively, as of December 31, 2012. Cash and cash equivalents were Ps. 35,497 million as of December 31, 2014, as compared to Ps. 27,259 million as of December 31, 2013 and Ps. 36,521 million as of December 31, 2012.

Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements

We do not have any material off-balance sheet arrangements.

Contractual Obligations

The table below sets forth our contractual obligations as of December 31, 2014.


	Maturity
	Less than 1 year		1 - 3 years		3 - 5 years		In excess of 5 years		Total
	(in millions of Mexican pesos)
Long-Term Debt
Mexican pesos		Ps. —		Ps. 6,072		—		Ps. 9,988		Ps. 16,060
Brazilian reais		180		287		179		111		757
Colombian pesos		492		277		—		—		769
U.S. dollars		30		2,108		19,516		43,433		65,087
Argentine pesos		141		400		—		—		541
Capital Leases
Brazilian reais		261		385		129		50		825
Interest payments⁽¹⁾
Mexican pesos		1,463		2,686		2,363		12,193		18,705
Brazilian reais		82		142		110		81		415
Colombian pesos		29		16		—		—		45
U.S. dollars		1,832		3,627		3,102		13,200		21,761
Argentine pesos		186		117		—		—		303
Interest Rate Swaps and Cross Currency Swaps⁽²⁾
Mexican pesos		1,650		3,755		2,826		9,439		17,670
Brazilian reais		2,768		5,497		3,164		15,211		26,640
Colombian pesos		28		16		—		—		44
U.S. dollars		1,240		4,144		1,713		7,862		14,959
Argentine pesos		187		51		—		—		238
Operating leases
Mexican pesos		3,434		6,474		5,866		15,672		31,446


	Maturity
	Less than 1 year		1 - 3 years		3 - 5 years		In excess of 5 years		Total
	(in millions of Mexican pesos)
U.S. dollars		196		347		342		361		1,246
Others		29		8		7		3		47
Commodity price contracts
Sugar⁽³⁾		1,341		989		—		—		2,330
Aluminum⁽³⁾		361		177		—		—		538
Expected benefits to be paid for pension and retirement plans, seniority premiums, post-retirement medical services and post-employment		622		557		565		1,657		3,401
Other long-term liabilities⁽⁴⁾		—		—		—		8,024		8,024

(1)

Interest was calculated using long-term debt as of and interest rate amounts in effect on December 31, 2014 without considering interest rate swap agreements. The debt and applicable interest rates in effect are shown in Note 18 to our audited consolidated financial statements. Liabilities denominated in U.S. dollars were translated to Mexican pesos at an exchange rate of Ps. 14.7180 per US$ 1.00, the exchange rate quoted to us by Banco de México for the settlement of obligations in foreign currencies on December 31, 2014.

(2)

Reflects the amount of future payments that we would be required to make. The amounts were calculated by applying the rates giving effect to interest rate swaps and cross currency swaps applied to long-term debt as of December 31, 2014, and the market value of the unhedged cross currency swaps (the amount of debt used in the calculation of the interest was obtained by converting only the units of investment debt for the related cross currency swap, and it also includes the effect of related interest rate swaps).

(3)	Reflects the notional amount of the futures and forward contracts used to hedge sugar and aluminum cost with a fair value liability of Ps. 409 million; see Note 20.6 to our audited consolidated financial statements.

(4)

Other long-term liabilities include provisions and others, but not deferred taxes. Other long-term liabilities additionally reflects those liabilities whose maturity date is undefined and depends on a series of circumstances out of our control, therefore these liabilities have been considered to have a maturity of more than five years.

As of December 31, 2014, Ps. 1,553 million of our total consolidated indebtedness was short-term debt (including maturities of long-term debt).

As of December 31, 2014, our consolidated average cost of borrowing, after giving effect to the cross currency and interest rate swaps, was approximately 7.7% (the total amount of debt used in the calculation of this percentage was obtained by converting only the units of investment debt for the related cross currency swap, and it also includes the effect of related interest rate swaps). As of December 31, 2013 our consolidated average cost of borrowing, after giving effect to the cross currency swaps, was 4.7%. As of December 31, 2014, after giving effect to cross currency swaps, approximately 42.7% of our total consolidated indebtedness was denominated and payable in Mexican pesos, 22.6% in U.S. dollars, 1.0% in Colombian pesos, 1.1% in Argentine pesos and the remaining 32.7% in Brazilian reais.

Overview of Debt Instruments

The following table shows the allocations of total debt of our company as of December 31, 2014:


	Total Debt Profile of the Company
	FEMSA and Others			Coca-Cola FEMSA			FEMSA Comercio		Total Debt
	(in millions of Mexican pesos)
Short-term Debt
Argentine pesos:
Bank loans		Ps. —			Ps. 301			—		Ps. 301
Brazilian reais
Bank loans		148			—			—		148
Long-term Debt⁽¹⁾
Mexican pesos:
Units of Investment (UDIs)		3,599			—			—		3,599
Senior notes		—			12,461			—		12,461
U.S. dollars:
Bank loans		—			6,986			—		6,986
Senior Notes		14,209			43,893			—		58,102
Brazilian reais:
Bank loans		440			316			—		756
Capital leases		65			760			—		825
Colombian pesos:
Bank loans		—			769			—		769
Argentine pesos:
Bank loans		—			541			—		541
Total		Ps. 18,461			Ps. 66,027			Ps. —		Ps. 84,488
Average Cost⁽²⁾
Mexican pesos		6.5	%		4.9	%		— </