NEWS
S. KOREAN CONSUMERS HIT BY STEEP LIQUOR PRICE HIKES DUE TO WEAK CURRENCY
By Susan Lewis
28-5-2024
Credit: Edward Howell/Unsplash
South Korean consumers are facing steep price hikes on imported liquors due to the weak exchange rate of the Korean currency Won to the US dollar.
Trans Beverages, which imports brands including Wild Turkey from USA, has increased prices of its products by 5 percent this month.
Beam Suntory Korea - which imports Hibiki, Yamazaki, Jim Beam and Bowmore - raised prices for their whiskies by 5 to 18 percent in January.
Brown-Forman Korea also raised the price of its American bourbon Woodford Reserve by 13.1 percent.
Diageo Korea - which imports Johnnie Walker from Scotland - raised its price by
9 percent last December.
Korean importer In Chang Trade, in Daejeon, which imports 70 percent of the Yantai Kaolian from China, said it will raise prices for both regular consumers and business consumers starting 1 July.
The company said a bottle of 125ml Yantai Kaoliang will rise by 5.2 percent, a 250 ml bottle will go up 6.3 percent and a 500 ml bottle will see a 5.8 percent increase.
Additionally, the more high-end range of Yantai Kaoliang products, imported by the company, will also undergo price rises from 1.7 to 4.7 percent.
It is the first time In Chang has raised prices for imported Yanai Kaoliang liquor since July 2022 when the products saw their prices increase by 5 to 6 percent.
"Not just the exchange rate but logistics and power usage costs all rose to the point we can no longer manage our operation," a company official said. "It was inevitable. We have to raise the prices before it's too late."
(the writer can be contacted at: info@thewinechronicle.com)
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