Vietnam | The beer and beverage industry was hit hard by the pandemic, when restaurants, bars and hotels were forced to close. However, the brewing industry has seen a rapid recovery.

Australia | There is a lot of angst about the latest excise hike, following high inflation. The cost of beer is set to rise again, as excise tax went up by 3.7 percent on 1 February, after rising 4 percent in August last year.

Australia | How inspired is this? The Asahi-owned brewing company CUB introduced Spill in November in partnership with the booze retailer Coles. CUB engaged the social media star Abbie Chatfield as the celebrity influencer and face of the brand.

India – The Budweiser brewer expects India to be among the top three markets for its brand in the next three years, led by double-digit growth in the premium beer segment, Indian media reported on 9 November.

 Australia | Dr Tim Cooper, Managing Director of the Adelaide-based Coopers Brewery, fears that beer is losing its ability to withstand tough economic times.

Australia | Succumbing to wokery, as some see it, the craft brewer Colonial has changed its name, following two years of pressure amid claims it “glorifies and glamorises the colonial process”. As of 7 September, it calls itself CBCo.

Australia | The Tax Office raised the excise by 4 percent on 1 August, leaving Australians with the world’s fourth-highest beer tax behind Norway, Japan, and Finland. Australians now pay 30 percent more tax on beer than their fellow drinkers in the UK.

Myanmar | After more than a year of legal wrangling, Japanese brewer Kirin will sell its stake in Myanmar brewery (MBL), a joint venture with military-owned Myanma Economic Holdings (MEHL), to the brewery for USD 164 million. The decision was announced on 30 June 2022.

Thailand: No light at the end of the tunnel for craft brewers

Thailand | The onset of covid-19 led to a strong fall in on-premise volume sales of beer in 2020, due to a temporary ban on sales of alcohol, the closure of entertainment venues and the decimation of tourism. Off-premise sales also contracted as consumers switched to spirits.

ThaiBev seeks up to USD 1 billion in revived Singapore IPO of beer unit

Singapore | Here we go again. Thai Beverage (ThaiBev) is looking to raise as much as USD 1 billion through the revived Singapore Initial Public Offering (IPO). It could be held later this year, various news agencies reported in May 2022.