China to be world's biggest beer producer
(Agencies)
Updated: 2004-10-13 15:21

China will be the world's biggest beer producer in 2004 for the third year running, brewing more than 7 billion gallons of the beverage, an industry expert said Wednesday.

This year's output exceeds last year's by about 500 million gallons, or 7.4 percent, Xiao Derun, director of the beer branch of the China Distillers Association, said.

Drinkers in China consumed 6.6 billion gallons of beer last year, pushing consumption past the United States and into the global top spot for the first time.

Continuing demand pushed pretax profit from beer up 22 percent to US$1.05 billion between January and July, Xiao said.

Xiao credited the increase in production to the purchase and consolidation of small, inefficient breweries by major brands, along with the construction of new breweries and new investment in existing ones.

China's beer market is still dominated by domestic brands such as Tsingtao and Yanjing, but international names such as Budweiser, Suntory, Carlsberg and Fosters also have a major presence in the country.

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