Whiskey sales often serve as an unofficial barometer of the state of the economy in general. By this standard, the economy must be looking up ― but whiskey dealers insist the trend is their version of ``green shoots'' and shouldn't be taken as a firm sign of recovery.
According to alcoholic drink makers Tuesday, whiskey sales were up 5.5 percent in May from April. Sales last month hit 204,327 boxes, each containing 18 x 500-mililiter bottles. The figure was a marked improvement from the 193,687 boxes sold in April.
Beer sales were also up in the same month-to-month comparison.
Dealers say that April sales stood at 15.25 million boxes, each containing 20 x 500-mililiter bottles. May saw an improvement of 8.6 percent in sales to 15.56 million boxes. Hite, the predominant beer brand, says that its beers had a market share of 57.4 percent, up 1.6 percentage points from the previous month, while OB dropped 1.6 percentage points to 42.6 percent.
Conventional wisdom suggests that when things get tough, people drink more soju, a popular distilled liquor with an alcohol content higher than beer but lower than whiskey. Indeed, soju sales have been up in recent months, a time when the economy was sinking.
But whiskey dealers argue that these numbers are not a proper gauge of the economy in general and their business in particular.
``Don't read too much into that month-to-month comparison,'' a dealer said on condition of anonymity. ``We are still down by more than 30 percent in sales, when comparing year to year.''
The dealer said that their internal forecast indicates that the whiskey industry needs at least six more months or so before getting back to the sales seen before the current financial crisis.
``It's a green shoot,'' he said.
Gangnam is home to many ``room saloons'' and other high-end bars, which consume a significant portion of whiskey. Dealers say that a two-month-long police crackdown ― still in force ― is also denting sales in the area. The action was triggered by allegations that presidential aides held a party and had sex with prostitutes, with the bill footed by businessmen.
``The figures are different but some say that about 600 policemen are out for a nightly crackdown,'' one said on condition of anonymity. ``This police presence is having a chilling effect on sales.''