26 April, 2022

Japan: Asahi to raise prices for its Super Dry beer and other beverages for the first time in years

Asahi Group Holdings Ltd. will raise prices for its Super Dry beer and other beverages for the first time in years, joining Lawson Inc., McDonald’s Holdings Co. Japan and other companies facing rising costs for ingredients, packaging and transport, Bloomberg reported on April 26.

The price hike, which includes kegs, Yoichi whiskeys and other beverages, will take effect for shipments from Oct. 1, the Tokyo-based brewer said in a statement Tuesday. Retail prices will increase 6% to 10%, a company spokesman said.

Although consumers in rich economies across the world have been experiencing the impact of inflation for more than a year, shoppers in Japan have become accustomed to flat prices, and even deflation, for the better part of three decades. Energy costs are also on the rise, and the recent weakness of the yen is also pushing up costs for imported goods, contributing to price hikes.

“We expect that the various costs associated with production and logistics will continue to rise, and it will be difficult to offset these increases,” Asahi said. The brewer last raised canned beer prices in 2008, while bottles and kegs became more expensive in 2018.

Earlier this month, convenience-store operator Lawson said it will raise the price of its popular “Karaage-Kun” chicken nugget snack for the first time in 36 years, by 10% to 238 yen ($1.86). McDonald’s, which once slashed the price of its burger to as little as 59 yen in 2002, said in March that it will add 10 to 20 yen to prices of some products, citing higher costs for beef, wages and transport.

Asahi blamed rising costs for everything from ingredients including malt and corn to packaging materials like aluminum and cardboard as well as transportation, for its price hikes.

The government of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, facing an upper house election this summer, is preparing economic measures to cushion the impact of inflation on households and businesses.

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