Global beer consumption in 2019 rose for the second straight year backed by strong demand in Asia and Africa in tandem with their economic growth, major Japanese beverage company Kirin Holdings Co. said Wednesday.
Global consumption edged up 0.5 percent to 189.05 million kiloliters, with people in the Asian and African regions spending more on beer, logging year-on-year gains of 0.7 percent and 5.2 percent, respectively.
Asia was the largest consumer of the alcoholic drink for the 12th consecutive year, according to Kirin.
By country, China ranked top for the 17th straight year with consumption of 39.22 million kiloliters, down 0.4 percent. The United States came in second with 23.92 million kiloliters, down 0.5 percent.
Japan placed seventh for the 13th year in a row with 4.87 million kiloliters, down 1.4 percent, affected by low temperatures in July and a massive typhoon in October.
South Africa ranked 12th, with consumption rising 5.0 percent from the previous year to 3.62 million kiloliters, due partly to its victory in the Rugby World Cup held in Japan.
In terms of annual per capita beer consumption, the Czech Republic secured first place for the 27th straight year at 188.6 liters. Japan consumed 38.4 liters per capita to rank 53rd.