Hitejinro Co., South Korea's leading beverage company, said Monday its annual exports of soju hit a new record high last year, thanks to the Korean distilled liquor's surging global popularity.
Hitejinro said it posted US$120 million in soju exports last year, up 16.4 percent from a year earlier. It also marked a sharp hike from $44 million in 2016, when the company first set its sights on globalizing soju.
The liquor maker attributed such results to its swift response to market trends, and the growing demand for flavored alcohol and preference for milder alcoholic beverages.
The United States has emerged as a significant market for Hitejinro, with soju shipments to the country skyrocketing by 82.4 percent from the previous year. Europe and Africa also recorded a combined surge of 39.4 percent in soju shipments from Hitejinro in 2021.
"In the short-term, Hitejinro plans to focus on increasing sales in Southeast Asia and China. In the long term, we aim to focus on western countries, where sales are rapidly growing," a company official said.
Source: Yonhap News Agency