REFILE-UPDATE 1-Japan's Kirin to fall short of H1 forecast-Nikke

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TOKYO, July 2 (Reuters) - Japanese brewer Kirin Holdings Co (2503.T) likely missed its profit forecast for the six months to June, held back by slow growth at its soft drink unit, the Nikkei business daily said on Wednesday, helping send its shares lower.

The company has forecast 13 percent growth in sales volume at its soft drink unit for 2008, but it posted a mere 1 percent increase for the first five months, with bottled green tea drinks suffering weak sales amid slower growth in the overall market.

Kirin, which trails Asahi Breweries Ltd (2502.T) in the domestic beer market, is likely to report a 28 percent rise in first-half profit, falling short of its forecast for a 38 percent jump, the Nikkei said. Kirin's group operating profit for January-June is expected to total around 55 billion yen ($519 million), the paper said. The company has predicted a profit of 59 billion yen.

Its Australian brewer Lion Nathan Ltd (LNN.AX) has made a solid performance, but dairy products unit National Foods, acquired last year, has shown slow growth, the Nikkei said.

A Kirin spokesman said the Nikkei report was speculation. It will report its half-year results on Aug. 4.

As of 0140 GMT Kirin shares were down 3.7 percent at 1,580 yen, underforming a 1.3 percent drop in the benchmark Nikkei average .N225 ($1=106.04 Yen) (Reporting by Sachi Izumi and Taiga Uranaka; Editing by Michael Watson)