Big thirst for premium beer

The Tsingtao Brewery Co, one of China's leading beer producers, announced 2010 profits of 1.52 billion yuan ($231.8 million), up 21.6 percent year-on-year.

Sales revenue rose 10.4 percent year-on-year to 19.6 billion yuan, thanks to steady market expansion, the Shanghai-listed firm said in its 2010 business report.

Earnings per share rose 18.4 percent from 2009, to 1.13 yuan, the report showed. The Qingdao brewery, in Shandong province, attributed the profit growth mainly to rising sales of premier products, it said.