The Japanese brewing force, Kirin Brewery, the country’s second largest brewer, has said it is aiming to increase sales of beer and low-malt happoshu beverages by 0.1% to 198.3m cases in 2003. The forecast rise follows a fall of 1.5% last year.
Kirin said it expected its beer and happoshu brands would outperform a general declining trend in the total market. Like Asahi, the market leader, Kirin is currently assessing how it will react to the rise in duty on happoshu scheduled to be implemented in May.
Kirin, which is forecasting a 3% decline in the happoshu sector as a whole in 2003, is expected to raise prices in response to the tax increase. “We may have no choice but to pass (the tax hike) on to prices,” said Kirin president, Koichiro Aramaki. “We expect the negative effects (on our business) will be considerable.”
