Shipments of beer, "happoshu" low-malt beer and nonmalt, beerlike drinks by Japan's five top brewers in July fell 5.7 percent year on year to 47.50 million cases due to a long rainy spell that cooled demand, industry figures showed Thursday.
The figure represents the second straight month of decline and was the lowest for July on record, which have been kept since January 1992, according to the Brewers Association of Japan and the brewers -- Kirin Brewery Co., Asahi Breweries Ltd., Sapporo Breweries Ltd., Suntory Ltd. and Orion Breweries Ltd.
Beermakers usually rake in the highest profits in the summer when beer demand typically rises.
One case holds 20 633-ml glass bottles.
The shipments of the nonmalt beverages, called "third-category" beer, slid 3.1 percent to 8.76 million cases. Their shipments had risen sharply since last year because of the lower taxes levied on them.