South Korea: Market share of imported beers may hit 10% this year

Will the growth of imported beer brands reach the sales of Korean beer brewers? Recent data, which was announced by discount chains and industry sources, shows the answer to this question could be yes, the Korea Times reported on October 24.

NH Investment and Securities said that Hite Jinro's third quarter result will drop 10 percent year-on-year.

The nation's No. 2 brewer was estimated to have 516 billion won ($454 million) in sales and 48 billion won in profit for the third quarter, which is a 2.8 percent rise and 0.4 percent decrease, respectively.

This figure was due to the shift of consumption from Korean beers, which are increasingly being mixed with soju, to imported beers, according to industry officials. More young people in their 20s and 30s enjoy drinking premium alcohol, despite the expense.

According to the Fair Trade Commission, market share of imported beer was 8.4 percent in 2015, but the figure may hit 10 percent this year.

E-mart said its sales of imported beers reached 44 percent of total beer sales, between January and October. If the trend continues, the figure will mark 50 percent, the discount chain said.

One of Korea's leading convenience stores, CU, also said sales of imported beer have marked 47 percent of its total beer sales this year.

Some industry officials said imported beers will not threaten Korean beers, as they are only consumed at home, not in restaurants or pubs. They point out consumption at home cannot surpass that of restaurants and pubs.

However, the recent-implemented anti-trust law, which bans public officials having meals worth more than 30,000 won, is encouraging people to drink at home, rather than restaurants or pubs, an E-mart official said.

A Korean brewery official also said the imported beer market will continue to grow.

"Korean brewers seek to overcome the threat, attracting their own fans with various kinds of flavored beer," she added. "Also, the market share of each imported beer brand has been divided, according to their growth."

24 October, 2016