NEWS/PRESS (full article)
Consumers benefit from excise reduction as CPI confirms fall in alcohol prices
11th February 2010
The Chairman of the Drinks Industry Group of Ireland, Kieran Tobin, has welcomed today’s Consumer Price Index figures from the Central Statistics Office showing a decline in the cost of alcohol beverages since December, immediately following the Minister for Finance’s lowering of excise in Budget 2010.Mr Tobin said this price drop clearly demonstrated that the drinks industry had passed-on the excise reduction as requested by the Minister when he introduced the measure.
Mr Tobin commented, “Across almost all indicators of price included in today’s CPI, alcohol prices have fallen significantly since the excise reduction was introduced.
“In the on-trade (categorisied as hotels and restaurants by the CSO) beer is down 2.8% in January compared to December; spirits are down 2.6%; while wine and cider are down 1.9%.
“In the off-trade, all alcoholic beverages are down 6.1% in the year, and 1.4% in the month. Wine and cider are down 5.1% in the year and 0.9% in the month; while beer is down 6.5% in the year and 5% in the month.
“The 2.1% increase in spirits pricing reported for the month of January is anomalous and attributable to a correction in their price following the Christmas period. At that time, retailers were heavily discounting spirits in order to compete with cross-border purchasing of products. In December, spirits prices declined by a massive 8.6%, much of which is attributable to the excise reduction.
“The spirits market suffered most during 2009 with declines in sales and consumption upwards of 30%. The 8.2% decline in the price of spirits in the year to the end of January that is recorded in today’s CPI is a true and accurate reflection of the extent to which the pricing of spirits has been reduced.
“The Drinks Industry has clearly responded to the Minister for Finance’s request for consumers to benefit from the reduction in excise. We recognise that this was a forward-thinking decision in order to repatriate revenue and provide a boost to the wider economy. We wholeheartedly welcome today’s confirmation that alcohol pricing in Ireland has fallen accordingly.”
ENDS
