AB InBev suffered a sharp decline in sales and earnings in China due to a strict zero COVID policy that was suddenly dropped in December.

The company’s Asian subsidiary, said it believed the restaurants and night life venues it sells to in China had almost fully re-opened by the end of February.

It said it was optimistic for a business recovery in 2023 after a transitional first quarter.

In the United States, AB InBev’s largest market, profit and revenue increased, largely due to price increases, although those same increases, along with harsh winter weather in December, cut into beer sales in volume terms.

Back in December, China dropped its strict three-year-old zero-Covid policy, which had hit the country’s hospitality industry considerably and Budweiser APAC saw its overall China volumes fall 3% as its market share shrank in response.

Looking forward, Budweiser APAC is now assessing that the premium segment will pick up some of the potential growth.  According to a research report by SPDB International, Budweiser APAC’s sales of high-end and above products have more than 40% of the China market.

It anticipates a significant recovery in its mainland China business after January, as the Covid outbreaks have eased.  In February, for instance, its sales volume recorded a 20 percent increase month-on-month.

Jan Craps, co-chairman and chief executive of Budweiser APAC, said the company aims to expand the number of Chinese cities where it sells at least one million liters of its premium Budweiser brand to 220 this year, up from 201 last year, with the number for its super-premium brands targeted to 60 this year, up from 51 last year.