Beer inventory levels are starting out stronger this year than 2023, according to the latest Beer Purchasers’ Index (BPI) from the National Beer Wholesalers Association (NBWA).
All but one segment – below premiums – recorded a higher BPI reading in January 2024 versus January 2023, with total beer recording a reading of 43, five points above the category’s January 2023 reading. January marks the eighth consecutive month that at least five of the seven measured beer segments recorded an increase in ordering year-over-year (YoY), according to the report.
The report is the inverse of January 2023 trends, when all segments except for (again) below premiums were down YoY. This year, below premiums recorded a reading of 33, 15 points below its January 2023 reading (48).
Still, every segment was in contraction (a.k.a. had a reading below 50), except for imports, which recorded a reading of 59, seven points above its 2023 reading. Total beer posted a reading of 43, five points above its 2023 reading (38).
At-risk inventory – the amount of beer in distributor warehouses that is within 30 days of expiration – had a reading of 42, “indicating that ordering levels remain cautious as the industry puts a turbulent 2023 in the rearview mirror,” NBWA chief economist Lester Jones wrote.
The rest of the segments performed as follows …
- Craft: 28, “slightly higher” than its January 2023 reading of 21, but continuing to “signal contraction,” with the lowest BPI reading among recorded segments;
- Premium light: 38, slightly above its January 2023 reading of 37;
- Premium regular: 43, 16 points above its January 2023 reading of 27;
- Flavored malt beverages/hard seltzer: 35, recording the largest YoY gains, 17 points above its January 2023 reading of 18;
- Cider: 30, above its January 2023 reading of 26.