Japan: Beer and beer-like drinks’ shipments edged down 0.7% in 2006

Japan's top five producers’ domestic shipments of beer and beer-like alcoholic drinks fell 0.7 percent in 2006 from the year before for the second straight yearly fall, Kyodo News International reported on January 17.

Shipments by Kirin Brewery Co., Asahi Breweries Ltd., Suntory Ltd., Orion Breweries Ltd. and Sapporo Breweries Ltd., a Sapporo Holdings Ltd. unit, came to 497.50 million cases, according to the Brewers Association of Japan and beer manufacturers.

One case holds 20 633-milliliter bottles, and is equivalent to 12.66 litres of beer.

Kirin Brewery attributed the mild market shrinkage to smaller consumption stemming from the rapid graying of the Japanese populace and to the defection of consumers to other alcoholic beverage categories.

The shrinkage also stemmed from the higher tax rate set for so-called "third-category beer," or beer-like sparkling drinks, whose consumption has been steadily expanding in recent years, the brewer said.

Other industry officials traced the contraction to a crackdown on drunken driving which police began implementing last fall.

Regular beer shipments dropped 2.0 percent to 276.63 million cases for the 10th consecutive year of fall.

Shipments of "happoshu" low-malt beer slumped 10.4 percent to 124.78 million cases for the fourth straight yearly drop.

Shipments of third-category beer rose 21.0 percent to 96.09 million cases, accounting for roughly 20 percent of the overall market for beer and beer-like sparkling alcoholic beverages.

Third-category products are cheaper than regular beer and low-malt beer as they are taxed at a lower rate.

Last week, Asahi Breweries and Kirin Brewery released their sales figures for all of 2006. The data showed that Asahi retained its top spot in beer and beer-like drinks sales for the sixth straight year, fending off archrival Kirin. Kirin had long led the beer industry until it was overtaken by Asahi in 2001.

Sales data released Wednesday by the five major beer brewers showed that Asahi's market share dropped 1.0 percentage point to 37.8 percent with Kirin being the runner-up with a 37.6 percent share, up 1.9 percentage points.

Sapporo was in third place in terms of market share, followed by Suntory and then by Orion.

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