Japan’s beer shipments hit new low

Shipments of beer and quasi-beer in Japan dipped to a record low in the first half of the year for sixth straight years, due to price hikes in retail and on-trade sectors.

According to the latest figures released by the five major domestic breweries – Asahi Breweries Ltd., Kirin Co., Suntory Beer Ltd., Sapporo Breweries Ltd., Orion Breweries, total shipments of beer and quasi beer in the country dropped 3.6% to 183.37 million cases (a case equals to 20 633ml bottles), reported Jiji Press.

The country’s overall beer shipments dipped 6.3%, a result of higher retail prices following stricter rules on discount alcohol sales, the report said.

Additionally, whole sale prices for beers were also pushed up this year, leaving restaurants and bars to hike up beer prices.

Although beer and low-malt beer-like drinks saw dips in shipments, the lower-priced third category of beer saw an increase of 1.9%, the first rise in five years, according to the newspaper.

In the overall market for beer and quasi-beer market, Asahi held a share of 37.6%, followed by Kirin with 34%, Suntory with 16.3%, Sapporo with 11.2%, and Orion with 0.9%.