Hong Kong: San Miguel Brewery Hong Kong, the locally listed arm of the Philippines brewer, will keep prices steady and plans an advertising blitz this summer to boost its local market share, The Standard posted on April 8.

"We're accelerating our program in Hong Kong as the market in the past few years has been relatively flat, if not declining,'' said chairman Francisco Eizmendi. "We're going to implement new advertising campaigns to build up the brand image.''

Beer consumption in Hong Kong amounted to 153 million liters last year, of which 37.3 percent falls under the low-priced segment. San Miguel is the market leader in Hong Kong, accounting for a third of both the high-priced and low-priced beer categories, according to general manager Ben Wong. He said first-quarter sales volume is higher than the same period last year

The group marked up its prices by an average of 7 percent last May, the first rise in five years, to ``properly position the brand in the proper price segment,'' according to managing director Ramon de la Llana. The group has achieved that objective, it said, and is not increasing prices this year.

In China, San Miguel plans to expand its breweries in Shunde, Guangdong province, as they are edging close to full capacity. The company has no immediate plans to acquire brewers although it does not rule out future opportunities, Eizmendi said.

Overseas brewers rushed into the overcrowded mainland market in the early 1990s, only to find little demand for their premium foreign beers.

The second wave of foreign interest came in recent years, characterized by acquisitions with valuations many analysts considered excessive.

Despite the huge interests, de la Llana said the mainland beer market has ``not changed dramatically,'' as 95-98 percent of consumers still prefer ``popular and mainstream'' (low-priced) beer.

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