E-Malt.com News article: 3540

India, Bangalore: The domestic beer volume increased 12-14% during the second quarter of the current financial year, 2004-05. The figures gathered from the country's leading brewers have pegged total sales for the July to September three-month period between 18.6 and 19 million cases, adding about 2.3 million cases compared to the same period last year, The Hidu Business Line posted o October 26.

The rather impressive volume sales for the quarter was triggered by the robust growth reported in some of the largest guzzling States. The volume jump in Andhra Pradesh was pegged at 25 % with Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu following with 8.2 % and 11 % respectively. Following the second quarter, the half-yearly growth of beer depletions is now pegged at about 47.5 million cases, up about five to six per cent year-on-year. It must be mentioned that the first quarter, which include the summer months that are regarded as the peak consumption season, reported a rather sedate growth of roughly two per cent on account of advanced monsoon and infrastructure issues in markets such as Tamil Nadu.

The market leader United Breweries (UB) accounted for over nine lakh cases of the roughly 2.3 million cases added in the second quarter. Shaw Wallace Breweries Ltd captured seven lakh cases and the third largest player, Millennium Alcobev Ltd, garnered nearly six lakh cases in terms of volume growth.

The Southern beer markets, which constitute nearly 50 % of the national beer sales, chipped in with 8.9 million cases in the second quarter, reporting 17 % growth on 7.6 million cases last year. Karnataka turned with a growth of 24 %, while Kerala chipped in with six per cent rise in volume.

In North, Delhi was the impressive gainer with a quarterly growth of 41 per cent in the wake of some reforms at the trade level. The half-yearly figures suggest that Andhra Pradesh (9.8 million cases), Maharashtra (8.2 million) and Tamil Nadu (5.2 million) continued to be the top three guzzlers in the country.


30 October, 2004