Beer sales lose fizz amid austerity drive

Beer output fell last year for the first time in a decade, with producers facing price pressure as a result of the anti-corruption campaign and rising costs, industry officials said.

Production slid 0.96 percent to 49.22 million kiloliters. In December alone, beer output slid 17.2 percent to 2.42 million kiloliters, according to chinaibeer.com, the website of the Beer Professional Committee at the China Food Industry Association.

The figures show that in the second half, output fell every month on a year-on-year basis.