HONG KONG (Reuters) - The number of craft beer brewers in Hong Kong has risen to more than 35 from none five years ago and many are betting on China’s expanding market to fuel sales, especially as the mainland develops an economic zone just a few miles away.
Under the Greater Bay Area initiative, China is planning to integrate nine southern Chinese cities with Hong Kong and Macau to create a region with a population of about 70 million and an economy that would be the world’s fifth-biggest by 2030.
That is a tempting prospect for these specialist beer makers. The sales volume of some craft brands in China is currently growing at well over 100 percent a year, according to Ben Cavendar at China Market Research Group in Shanghai.
“So the growth is pretty significant,” he said, adding that major brands are starting to buy up craft breweries to help their expansion in China, the world’s biggest beer market by value.
Typically, craft beer is made by small and independent breweries that use traditional or innovative ingredients and is sold at a premium to the broader market. The sector has taken off globally in recent years.
Hong Kong’s overall beer market, expected to see sales of $569 million in 2018, is forecast to grow more than 4 percent annually between 2018-2021, statistics portal Statista says.
Gweilo Beer (Hong Kong) Ltd, one of the largest craft brewers in Hong Kong, is one company setting its sights on the Greater Bay Area. The three-year old company has expanded in Singapore and plans to sell its brand in Thailand but
