"After the holiday, prices didn't fall but rose!" The sales of 'Mao Wuzhi' during the Spring Festival were impressive. Institutions say the mid-to-high-end segment is under pressure.

“Typically, the price of Feitian Moutai drops after the Spring Festival, but this year it has actually risen instead of falling,” said a seasoned liquor merchant with many years of industry experience.

The Spring Festival is usually considered the peak season for white wine sales and the most important sales window for liquor companies throughout the year. During the longest Spring Festival holiday in history, some liquor merchants reported shortages of Feitian Moutai, while others directly said “not enough to sell.” Additionally, some netizens commented that “Moutai has become the ‘C-position’ on the New Year’s Eve dinner table.” On iMoutai, the 1499 yuan Feitian has been listed for nearly two months and is still hard to purchase.

On February 25, reporters visited terminal markets to gather feedback on sales during the Spring Festival and the post-holiday white wine market.

Historically, before the festival, the retail prices of high-end white wines, including Feitian Moutai, tend to rise slightly, and after the holiday, prices usually decline again.

During on-site visits, it was found that unlike previous years, the retail price of Feitian Moutai has not decreased this year; in fact, there has been a slight increase. Regarding the post-holiday market, some distributors admitted that the price fluctuations are “difficult to predict.”

Feitian wholesale price remains steady around 1700 yuan, distributors say “post-holiday price movements are unpredictable”

Overall, the current retail price of Feitian Moutai generally stays above 1750 yuan, with some liquor stores quoting nearly 1900 yuan. Wuliangye Eighth Generation is priced around 850 yuan, and Guojiao 1573 remains above 900 yuan, all relatively stable.

A Moutai distributor told reporters, “Since the iMoutai launched the 1499 yuan Feitian, a series of measures by Moutai’s factory have significantly changed the distribution channels, which has also affected market patterns.” The distributor also said, “The 1499 yuan Feitian on iMoutai is still very hard to get, indicating that genuine demand still cannot be fully met.”

Regarding the market trend for Feitian Moutai, the distributor said, “In the short term, Feitian is likely to stay stable mainly because distributors have already allocated their quotas for January to March to the market.” Another liquor merchant added, “It’s still too early to predict price increases or decreases after the holiday; a decline in the short term seems unlikely.”

On genuine demand, a Moutai distributor commented, “This Spring Festival, the demand for Feitian liquor was indeed very high. Some customers only bought a few boxes in previous years, but this year they bought dozens. The main reason is probably the relatively favorable price.”

Notably, there have been rumors recently that “the factory price of Feitian Moutai has been raised from 1169 yuan per bottle to 1299 yuan.” Moutai’s representatives told media that this is false information. On February 25, a Moutai distributor clearly stated to reporters, “We have not received any official notice.”

These rumors have also caused some disturbance in the terminal market. One liquor merchant told reporters, “The price of Moutai had already slightly decreased after the holiday, but once the rumors spread, competitors raised their procurement prices again, and supply is already tight.”

Wholesale prices for Feitian Moutai remain steady, with original case wholesale prices around 1700 yuan, and loose bottles around 1650 yuan.

According to third-party platform “Today’s Wine Prices,” on February 25, the wholesale price for 2026 Feitian Moutai original cases (53 degrees / 500ml) was 1700 yuan per bottle, and loose bottles were 1650 yuan, both unchanged from the previous day. The 2025 Feitian original case was 1720 yuan, and loose bottles were 1660 yuan, also stable. Additionally, the Zodiac Horse Classic case was 2260 yuan, down 40 yuan from the previous day; the loose bottles were 2070 yuan, down 30 yuan. Other famous wines, such as 52-degree / 500ml Puwu (Eighth Generation) and Guojiao 1573, are priced at 850 yuan per bottle.

Institutional Research: Moutai and Wuliangye sales shine, industry overall declines double digits

Recently, multiple institutions released research reports on the Spring Festival sales of white wine. They generally believe that the market showed clear segmentation, with “Moutai and Wuliangye” performing particularly well, while the mid-to-high-end segment faced pressure, and overall industry sales declined by double digits.

Huachuang Securities pointed out that during the Spring Festival, the overall performance of white wine met expectations, with industry-wide sales down by double digits, and cash flow slower than last year. High-end Moutai and Wuliangye saw double-digit growth, while the mid-range segment experienced some pressure, with prices in the 200-300 yuan range slightly declining, and leading brands in the 100-yuan segment seeing slight increases.

Specifically, after market-oriented reforms, Moutai’s mainstream products continued to perform well, with double-digit growth during the festival. Local channels reported almost no inventory; Wuliangye’s demand was stimulated after price reductions, exceeding expectations with over 20% increase in shipments; Laojiao’s high-price strategy caused some sales pressure; Fenjiu maintained stable prices with steady growth; Yanghe focused on channel restructuring, reducing promotional costs, and current inventory levels are at reasonable levels.

Guojin Securities explicitly stated that based on post-holiday channel feedback, overall sales during the Spring Festival were in line with pre-market expectations, with an estimated 10-15% year-on-year decline in total channel sales.

Regarding consumption scenarios, many institutions believe that government and business demand remains under pressure, while mass consumer demand has significantly increased.

CICC’s report noted that government and business demand continues to be under pressure, but demand from the general public has been significantly boosted and continues to grow.

Western Securities believes that the “C-end era” of white wine has begun. The industry is undergoing a structural transformation from relying on B-end (corporate and channel) relationships to being driven mainly by C-end (individual and mass) consumption. The shrinking B-end market and the continuous growth of the C-end market will profoundly change the research framework, competitive landscape, and business models of the industry.

Additionally, many institutions mentioned that confidence among white wine distributors has been restored.

CICC believes that, apart from strong brands like Moutai and Wuliangye, most brands no longer require a strong start-of-year performance. Post-holiday inventories are lower than last year, channel pressures are easing, and faster payment cycles are boosting confidence among distributors and terminals. Kaiyuan Securities noted that, with liquor companies easing cash flow pressures and promoting genuine market sales, most distributors’ inventories are improving, and confidence is gradually recovering.

Looking ahead, Guotai Haitong Securities believes that the white wine industry has entered the bottom of this cycle, with signs of channel recovery, improved market conditions, rising wholesale prices, and inventory digestion, all of which are strongly catalyzed by macro policies.

Kaiyuan Securities’ research report pointed out that the bottom of the white wine industry is becoming clear, with high-end sales exceeding expectations and the overall market further consolidating. Leading brands have also reduced the mandatory targets for the start-of-year sales, making industry competition more rational. The key to future industry recovery lies in the continued revival of consumption scenarios and further inventory digestion.

According to Dazhihui VIP, as of the close on February 25, Guizhou Moutai’s stock price was 1491.66 yuan per share, up 1.69%.

(Article source: The Paper)