Kirin Brewery Co will break tradition and price its beers independently of the three other major Japanese brewers once revised liquor tax rates take effect in May, the Nihon Keizai Shimbun reported over the weekend, according to AFX News from March 3.

With the tax on a 350ml can of beer slated to fall 0.7 yen, Asahi, Sapporo Breweries Ltd and Suntory Ltd plan to lower their shipment prices by 0.75 yen in May. But Kirin intends to reduce its shipment price by 1 yen, the report said.

For larger 633ml bottles, Kirin will cut the price just 1 yen, while the other three brewers will reduce prices 1.25 yen on a tax drop of 1.26 yen, it said.

Kirin's departure from the industry tradition of going along with others is thought to be driven by its desire to unseat Asahi as the market leader, the business daily said.

Moscow's beer and non-alcoholic beverage works, Ochakovo, is not considering a sale, but does not rule out an opportunity for strategic partnership, the company's General Director Vladimir Antonov told a press conference at the end of February.

Ochakovo has been getting regular offers from leading foreign companies, but a decision was made at the shareholders' meeting not to sell the company, Antonov said. However, the enterprise could partner or cooperate with other companies, particularly in bottling other brands' products. Negotiations to this effect with undisclosed companies are under way.

Global brewers Heineken and SABMiller have declined to comment on any interest in a tie-up with Russia’s last notable independent brewer Ochakovo.

According to experts the most probable development of Anheuser-Busch could be the purchase of Ochakovo. Sources said that Ochakovo has already received an offer from Anheuser-Busch.

Malt exporters booked almost 200,000 tonnes export licences in February, major quantities were shipped to Latin America.

Total licence bookings are 77,000 tonnes behind the pace of last year. However, in 2005 spring and early summer export shipments were disappointing. If licence fixations shipments continued at the same pace in March-June as in July-February, EU exports may still come close to last year’s 2.2 million tonnes.

Prices of malting barley had been sliding down slowly during the past months. According to market analysts, in late February there was a change of mood, after purchases of coops and traders in France and Denmark. It seems that France has little spring barley with a maximum protein content of 11.5 % left.

England is reported to be sold out in crop 2005, Scotland has a few cargoes left for export. Any larger new demand must be covered from Scandinavia, where stocks are large, but farmers stubbornly holding on to their barley. Prices recovered by EUR 2,- per ton from the lows.