The Beer Purchasers’ Index (BPI) for August shows “an opposite outcome to July 2023,” with at-risk inventory up and overall BPI down, according to the National Beer Wholesalers Association (NBWA).
July leaned positive for beer industry members, with the BPI rising to 54 (indicating expansion), while at-risk inventory declined to 44, its first reading below 50 (indicating contraction) since February.
However, results flipped in the latest month, with a BPI reading of 45 and an at-risk inventory reading of 52.
NBWA chief economist Lester Jones highlighted more positive and “notable results” in the August report, such as the continued growth of imports. The segment posted a reading of 73, 10 points above its August 2022 reading of 63.
Craft also posted a double-digit increase in its reading year-over-year (YoY), with an index of 42 this month versus 28 in August 2022. The 14-point swing indicated “the segment may have bottomed out and should see higher levels of ordering in the future,” Jones wrote.
The flavored malt beverage/hard seltzer segment also increased slightly YoY – up 2 points, to 33 – similarly suggesting order declines for the segment have “bottomed out,” Jones wrote.
Other segment readings include:
- Below premium (52), up from 42 in August 2022, suggesting the “big downward shift” from July – its reading of 39 last month versus 52 in July 2022 – was “an anomaly;”
- Premium light (58), a 20-point YoY jump from August 2022 (38);
- Premium regular (48), up from 33 in August 2022;
- And cider (33), up from 26 in August 2022.