Galaxy Securities: The peak season and World Cup resonate, optimistic about craft beer and regional brand expansion.

Galaxy Securities research report stated that the beer sector's operations are resilient, and they are optimistic about the pricing power of the beer industry. Currently, aluminum can prices have increased significantly year-on-year, while barley and glass prices have also slightly risen. It is expected that the price increase trend will continue in the second half of 2026, but the beer industry can offset this through measures such as optimizing product structure and reducing promotional expenses. Referring to the cost increase cycle since 2017, the beer industry as a whole has maintained a stable and rising profitability. In the short term, attention should be paid to the peak season and the World Cup catalyst. On one hand, the hot weather from June to August is favorable for beer consumption nationwide, and on the other hand, with the World Cup taking place in June and July, the two factors are expected to drive the recovery of dining and self-drinking scenarios. They are bullish on segments with excess returns: 1) Craft beer, as the industry is currently in a high-growth period, leading in the segmented category is Jingxing Beer, which is expected to fully benefit from the expansion dividend with its differentiated products and flexible channel strategy; 2) Regional brand expansion, paying attention to Huiquan Beer, which is expected to benefit from the relaxed competitive landscape in the Fujian market, revitalized internal management, and the large sales volume of the 1983 flagship product, with the dual logic of increasing market share and improving profitability.