In 2018, Chinese anti-corruption authorities arrested Wang Xiaoguang, vice governor of Guizhou Province, on charges of receiving more than 6 billion won in bribes from Moutai Group. At the time, China's state broadcaster CCTV reported that Wang had poured 4,000 bottles of Moutai — received as bribes — down his home toilet just before his arrest. The report also relayed an anecdote that his wife, watching the scene, clicked her tongue and said, "No matter how much you pour out, there's no end to it."
Moutai is the iconic premium liquor beloved by the Chinese people. Produced with water from the Chishui River in the Moutai area of Renhuai, Guizhou Province, it bears the name "Kweichow Moutai." The spirit is said to be made by steaming sorghum nine times, fermenting the yeast eight times, and distilling it seven times.
Moutai, a fixture at China's state banquet tables, is also a favored tool for wining and dining government officials and for bribery. This is precisely why it becomes a prime target during China's anti-corruption crackdowns. After President Xi Jinping assumed the post of Communist Party general secretary in 2012 and launched an anti-corruption campaign, Moutai was branded a symbol of extravagance and subjected to tough sanctions. Yet the crackdown only heightened its scarcity, sending prices through the roof. The company's valuation soared in tandem — Moutai's share price climbed from around 150 yuan in 2012 to 2,600 yuan in 2021, claiming the top spot by market capitalization on China's stock market and earning the title of "emperor stock."
Recently, Moutai announced it would raise the ex-factory price of its flagship "Feitian 53-degree" from 1,169 yuan to 1,269 yuan, and the official retail price from 1,499 yuan to 1,539 yuan. The retail price hike is the first in eight years since 2018. Some analysts say the price increase is driven by deteriorating earnings. Moutai's revenue growth, which had been running at 10 to 20 percent, slowed to 6 percent last year, and the price hike is seen as an attempt to shore up profitability. Moutai's once-soaring share price has been on a downward trajectory over the past five years, with the bubble deflating. Some point out that Moutai's stock price trajectory reveals the contradictions and greed lurking behind China's rapid growth. With Moutai taking a direct hit from an economic slowdown caused by the U.S.-China trade war and shifting consumption patterns, one wonders whether the storied liquor brand can recapture its former glory.