China: China Resources Beer CEO resigns

Hou Xiaohai has resigned as executive director and chairman of China Resources Beer to focus on �other personal engagements�, Yahoo! Finance reported on June 27.

Xiaohai will also step down as a member of three of the brewer's committees, the company said in a Hong Kong stock-exchange filing.

Xiaohai, who served as the company's CEO since 2016, assumed the role of chairman in April 2023.

Zhao Chunwu, an executive director and China Resources Beer�s president, will �temporarily� assume the chairman�s duties during the transition period.

China Resources Beer, which owns the Snow beer brand, is a subsidiary of state-owned China Resources (Holdings) Company Limited (CRH). It focuses on the manufacturing, sales, and distribution of alcoholic beverages.

In 2024, the company reported a consolidated turnover of 38.63bn yuan ($5.39bn), down 0.8% on a year earlier.

China Resources Beer makes the bulk of its revenue from brewing but the turnover of its beer division dipped 1% to 36.49bn yuan. Nevertheless, the company said its "sales volume and turnover performance outperformed some of the peers".

Turnover from baijiu grew 4% to 2.15bn yuan.

Excluding impairment losses, earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) rose by 2.9% to 6.34bn yuan.

Profit for the year stood at 4.76bn yuan, down from 5.21bn yuan in 2023.

In October, China Resources Beverage, another CRH subsidiary, raised over $600m through its Hong Kong listing.

The company is the second-largest producer of packaged drinking water in China and the largest in the purified water category.

Its portfolio includes C�estbon and L�eau water brands, as well as Zhi Ben Qing Run herbal tea, Mi Shui juices, and Mulene sports drinks.