Korea’s beer exports drop by 46% in first nine months

Overseas shipments of South Korean beer dropped by 46 percent to $54.1 million in the first nine months of the year from $117.3 million last year, the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corp. revealed.

Exports to China dropped from $67.6 million to $20.3 million.

Meanwhile, shipments to Russia plunged by 78 percent, those to the US fell 41 percent and those to Hong Kong sank 27.3 percent.

The country's beer importation also dipped 20.4 percent to $175.2 million from $219.9 million last year.

South Korea's boycott of Japanese products decimated the latter's beer exports to the country.

In August, Japan's exported 330,000 liters or $297,000 worth of beer to South Korea, which was a small fraction of the 6.5 million liters or $6.07 million pre-boycott levels.

South Korea accounted for 60 percent of Japan's beer exports before the boycott.