Monthly sales of beer showed their first increase for the year in May in South Korea, partly boosted by the 2006 FIFA World Cup football finals currently underway in Germany, industry sources said Monday.

According to data released by the Korea Alcohol and Liquor Industry Association, South Korean brewers shipped 173.2 million litres of beer in May, up 3.7 per cent from a year earlier.

"The monthly increase in beer sales, despite an overall slump in the market, is attributable to the national soccer team's tune-up games last month in preparation for the World Cup that kicked off last week," an association official said.

However, shipments of beer had continued to decrease during the first four months, dropping a combined 7.27 per cent to 557.4 million litres, compared with the same period last year, the association said.