Stock price boom raises hopes for liquor firms

Soaring stock prices of Chinese liquor brands since the beginning of the year have raised expectations of a recovery in the liquor sector, strengthened by Diageo's increased stake in Sichuan Shuijingfang, the Shanghai-listed Chinese liquor brand.

Diageo, the world's leading premium drinks company, on Feb 26 launched a partial tender offer to SJF to increase its aggregate equity stake in SJF from 60 percent to up to a maximum of 70 percent.

The offer price is 45 yuan ($6.7) per share. The tender offer's maximum value is 2.1 billion yuan.