China: Subdued demand weighing on Budweiser Brewing’s China sales

Goldman Sachs analysts say weak catering traffic is brewer's biggest headwind, while "super premium" products are outperforming, MSN reported on July 1.

Subdued demand in China is likely to have weighed on Budweiser Brewing APAC's second-quarter sales, according to analysts, but the ongoing Fifa World Cup might provide a brighter start to the third quarter.

Citing information from investor relations personnel at Belgian beer giant Anheuser-Busch InBev's Asian subsidiary, Goldman Sachs analysts said in a report issued on June 29 that Budweiser Brewing believed weak catering traffic remained the biggest headwind in China, with nightlife sales having remained relatively stable.

Budweiser is expected to report its second-quarter results on July 30.

Another Goldman Sachs report, released on June 30, forecast a 2.4 per cent organic volume decline for AB InBev in the Asia-Pacific region.

Jacky Tsang, an equity analyst at Morningstar, said: "Demand in on-trade channels has been soft and remained the case in the second quarter, due to sluggish consumer sentiment."

The World Cup, running from June 11 to July 19, coincides with the summer beer consumption peak in the world's second-largest consumer goods market.

Tsang said Budweiser Brewing had ramped up World Cup-related marketing activities in China - with AB InBev serving as the event's official beer sponsor - and that should result in "positive sales momentum" this month.

A day before the World Cup kicked off, Fifa and AB InBev announced an extension of their global partnership agreement, which will now run through to 2030.

In the June 29th’s report, Goldman Sachs analysts led by Leaf Liu said: "The company will maintain the investment on in-home occasions, where super premium products outperformed the overall volume, and wait for a clear recovery signal for more promotion efforts for on-premise, especially Chinese restaurant, channels."

The brewer had continued to launch more core and premium products including Harbin 1900, Bud Magnum and Corona, especially in in-home and online-to-offline channels, to improve its product mix, they said, adding that it viewed online-to-offline as one of its fastest-growing channels.

02 July, 2026