Kirin Holdings Co. said it acquired Myanmar's biggest beer company for $560 million (about ¥69.7 billion), as it seeks to expand abroad with an aging population at home reducing domestic demand for its beverages.
A Singapore unit of Japan's second-largest brewer by market value has acquired 55 percent of the outstanding shares in Myanmar Brewery Ltd. from Fraser & Neave Ltd., Kirin said in a statement on Wednesday.
Beer consumption in Japan has slumped since 2001 as people turned to alternatives such as whisky and wine. The country is projected to have a quarter fewer people by 2050, according to the Washington, D.C.-based Population Reference Bureau.
Kirin's sales in Japan have dropped 17 percent from 2010 while revenue from the Asia-Pacific area has climbed 9 percent, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Kirin Chairman Senji Miyake, who was then the president, said in February that the company is seeking acquisition opportunities in Southeast Asia and China.
Myanmar is an "exciting market" because of its expected high growth and increasing consumer consumption, Kirin said in the statement.