Eastern Europe

Cigarettes remain the most common choice of tobacco for the majority of smokers in 2022 and was the main driver of tobacco overall, despite the unit price increase. Widespread distribution across all retail channels in Romania supports the…

Overall, the picture was negative for tobacco in 2022, with constant value sales falling, and this was largely driven by a drop in volume sales of cigarettes. Twice yearly tax hikes on cigarettes, which are scheduled to continue until 2025, are…

Overall, the picture was positive for tobacco in 2022, largely driven by a growth in volume sales of cigarettes. This was in spite of high inflation stemming from the energy crisis caused by the war in Ukraine. Part of the reason for the increased…

Companies face numerous challenges in 2023 after recent record-breaking sales. They include weakened demand, high interest rates on debts, and tighter consumer credit conditions. Elevated inventory levels are also of concern.

While off-trade volume sales remained higher, the on-trade channel was the major driver of total volume sales growth in beer and spirits in 2022. Growth rates were closer in on- and off-trade volume terms in wine. The stronger overall growth…

Growing numbers of tourists and immigrants, mostly people affected by the outbreak and course of the war in Ukraine, stimulated strong total volume sales growth for beer in 2022. The on-trade channel was the major driver of total volume sales growth…

The recovery of tourism flows in Georgia in 2022 boosted the demand for spirits. On-trade volume sales continued to grow to almost reach the 2019 pre-pandemic level by the end of the review period. In 2022, local consumers spent more time outside…

Rising numbers of tourists, but also immigrants, mainly due to the effects of the war in Ukraine, drove the recovery in the demand for wine in 2022. The reopening in society and return to pre-Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic lifestyles encouraged the…

In 2022, alcoholic drinks achieved moderate volume growth amidst growing inflationary pressure, rising unit prices and lower personal disposable incomes. The ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine further exacerbated the precarious economic…

In 2022, Alcoholic drinks in Bulgaria were mainly influenced by a 16.9% inflation rate, the Ukraine war, supply problems, high transport costs and delivery delays. All this led to a considerable rise in unit prices and stock problems among…

While unit prices of most other consumer goods saw double-digit percentage growth rates, in line with inflation, the unit prices of alcoholic drinks saw more moderate growth since many of the major brands are of domestic origin and were able to limit…

Alcoholic drinks in Poland recorded a slight downtick in terms of total volume sales during 2022. Despite the considerable surge in on-trade sales, buoyed by the unrestricted operational ability of foodservice establishments post-pandemic, this…

Despite the economic and geopolitical uncertainty of 2022, alcoholic drinks in Romania enjoyed some significantly positive developments in some of its categories. This was in large part due to the successful eradication of COVID-19 restrictions as of…

As COVID-19 fears subsided in 2022 there was a strong desire among many Serbian consumers to start socialising again with this helping to stimulate on-trade volume growth with sales fully recovering after the significant decline seen during 2020.…

Alcoholic drinks, as a product area, in Slovakia experienced the impact of weakened purchasing power among Slovak consumers in 2022. However, the price growth in the industry was relatively slower compared to other sectors. This can be attributed to…

Alcoholic drinks has recovered to pre-pandemic sales levels in volume and value terms, with consumption rising following the abolishment of social and travel restrictions. Horeca establishments were open without any limitations in 2022 enabling…

Overall, the consumption of alcoholic drinks in the Czech Republic continued declining in total volume terms in 2022, with signs of this trend developing even before the pandemic, especially through the on-trade. The lifting of COVID-19 restrictions…

Despite price hikes, beer continued to witness volume growth in 2022 supported by the recovery of the on-trade. Significant unit price increases were visible across all product categories as rampant inflation pushed up costs and producers were forced…

In 2022, beer in Bulgaria saw a slight increase in retail volume terms thanks to the preference for lower-alcoholic drinks and awareness of the health benefits of beer. However, although on-trade beer volume sales continued recovering post-pandemic,…

Beer continued to see moderate total volume growth in 2022 and high inflation impacted average unit prices. The category is still performing below pre-pandemic levels mainly due to limited on-trade performance, which continues to recover slowly post…