By Choi Sung-jin
Korean beers have recently become so unpopular among local drinkers -- some of whom say they are flatter than North Korean beers -- that the government is considering opening up the monopolized market.
Last year, however, the nation’s beer exports hit a record high of $84 million, up 15.4 percent from 2014, according to the Korea Customs Service.
The outbound shipments represented growth of 16.9 percent over the past three years when compared with $72.25 million in 2013. That is impressive growth given the nation’s overall exports dropped 5.9 percent during the period.
Beer exports in the first seven months of this year reached $48.01 million, a 3.7 percent increase from a year ago, and annual overseas sales are expected to break another record this year, officials said.
In volume terms, beer exports amounted to 107.31 million liters, up 14.4 percent in the past three years. Thanks to growth in premium beer exports, the average price has also risen steadily, from 77 cents a liter in 2013 to 78 cents in 2014 and 79 cents last year.
Hong Kong was the biggest importer of Korean beer, accounting for 41.6 percent of the total, followed by China (22.9 percent), Iraq (8.6 percent), Singapore (8 percent) and the United States (4 percent).
The former British colony has been the largest buyer of Korean beer since 2010, and its imports last year totaled $35 million, up 8.2 percent from 2014. “Korea’s premium lager beers have continued to enjoy popularity in foreign markets, especially in Asia,” the official said.
China has emerged as the second-largest buyer of Korean beers by recording double-digit import growth. Vietnam’s imports were also remarkable, marking 38-times growth during the three-year period to reach $615,000 last year.
“The export growth of Korean brewers will likely continue for the time being as Korean brewers have succeeded in localization, catering to the tastes of foreign drinkers and riding high on ‘chimaek (chicken plus maekju (beer)) fervor’ sparked by Korean dramas’ popularity overseas,” the official said.
In the past, exports tended to increase sharply in summer but now outbound shipments are steady throughout the year, he said.
Despite the relative increase in beer exports, the absolute amount remains insignificant and more domestic drinkers are saying the time has long past for the nation to break up the duopoly -- shared by two major lager brands, Cass and Hite -- and allow in far more diverse, if smaller, brewers of craft beers.
The Fair Trade Commission, the government’s antitrust agency, is also moving to ease regulations on pricing and tax to introduce more competition into the industry.