Catenaa, Friday, October 31, 2025- Global top-listed alcohol makers have shed a combined $830 billion in a little more than four years as the industry grapples with monumental change.
That’s the total loss in market value, as a Bloomberg gauge of some 50 companies stands 46% below its June 2021 record high.
Shifting drinking patterns and rising health concerns have hit earnings, compounded by US tariffs, the impact of buoyant interest rates on consumer spending, and even elevated commodity prices.
In China, weak household confidence and a booze ban for official functions have added fuel to the downtrend.
The result is a wave of pressure facing companies behind some of the world’s most popular drinks that has left them adrift from the record rally in global equities.
Instead, these businesses are struggling to adapt to new commercial dynamics that have caught many by surprise.
This year, shares of European giants Diageo, home to the Johnnie Walker and Smirnoff brands, Pernod Ricard, and Remy Cointreau have all hit the lowest levels in at least a decade.
Jack Daniel’s owner Brown-Forman and Australia’s Treasury Wine Estates have similarly slumped. Chinese baijiu titan Kweichow Moutai is trading more than 40% below its 2021 high.
Stock price declines may extend further with alcohol producers grappling not just with hits to revenue, but also elevated levels of debt and management churn as they adapt to a sector in flux, according to Simon.
The main challenge facing the industry is a change in behavior. In August, a Gallup gauge of US alcohol consumption fell to the lowest since records began in 1939.
Warnings from the likes of the World Health Organization and the US Surgeon General have sapped demand among Gen X. At the same time, alcohol has become less fashionable for millennials and Gen Z.
