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Hong Kong retailer slashes spirits prices following tax cut
Watson’s Wine, one of the biggest wine and spirits retailers in Hong Kong, has lowered the prices of some of its premium spirits by up to 60% after the government announced its overhaul of the duty system.
Watson’s Wine is lowering the prices of more than 100 premium spirits it stocks in support of the government’s liquor tax cut.
The retailer said on Wednesday that the price cuts would apply to “a large range of carefully curated premium spirits, making world-class spirits more accessible to Hong Kong connoisseurs”.
According to the South China Morning Post, prices will be slashed by up to 59.2%, and the most expensive spirits experienced the biggest cuts.
A bottle of Cognac Tesseron’s Signature XO Passion had its price cut 41.3% to HK$8,800, from HK$15,000. A bottle of Experience 01 from the same brand was reduced from HK$36,800 to HK$15,000 – a 59.2% decrease.
Cognacs from Martell and whiskies from Ardbeg, Balvenie and Macallan were also reduced from 6.7% to more than 30%.
A spokeswoman for the company said: “Watson’s Wine … announces its support for the government’s initiative to reduce duty rates on high-end liquor products, in alignment with the economic growth agenda published in the 2024 policy address.”
Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu announced on 16 October that the spirits tax rate, previously 100% on liquor with an ABV of 30% or higher, would be significantly reduced.
Under the new legislation, the 100% rate will remain for the first HK$200, but a 10% tax rate will apply for the portion of the bottle price over HK$200.
Until now Kong Kong has had one of the highest spirits duties of any territory in the world. The new system favours high-end spirits with a larger proportion of their value exceeding the import price threshold seeing the most benefit from the new rules.
“Watson’s Wine welcomes the government’s latest policy on spirits and firmly believes that this duty reduction will greatly benefit our customers and the industry at large,” managing director Jeremy Stockman said.
The region is hoping to further establish itself as a trading hub for spirits in Asia, much like it has done for wine thanks to a similar slashing of duty in 2008. That year, Hong Kong ditched duties on wine. In 2018, a decade since the abolishment of wine duties, total wine imports to Hong Kong were US$153 million – an increase from the 2006 figure of US$121 million.
Stockman added: “Through price reductions and investments in new spirits retail concept, together with the industry, Watson’s Wine will help establish Hong Kong as a hub for high-end liquor.”
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