New DEHP woes for Moutai (2)

On December 9, Feitian Moutai was alleged to have a high level of DEHP - 3.3 milligrams per liter according to the Center for Food Safety in Hong Kong - which was followed by a temporary halt of Moutai's trading on the stock market.

And on December 21, a government ban on liquor at official functions sent stocks sliding even further.

Data from Beijing-based Qianinfo Consulting indicated that the sales volume of high-end liquors dropped by 20 percent year-on-year in 2012.

Monday's allegation will further Moutai's sales slump and continue to hit China's liquor stock market, Fan Jie, an industry analyst from Adfaith Management Consulting, told the Global Times Monday.

Shu Guohua, a Beijing-based liquor marketing expert, predicted that Moutai's yearly growth in profits will swing between 25 percent and 35 percent in 2013, far less than 2012's growth. He further predicted that Wuliangye liquors will not sell well in 2013 either.

The Shenzhen-listed Wuliangye saw its shares drop by 2.51 percent at closing time Monday and shares of the Shenzhen-listed Jiugui fell by 2.26 percent.

Shu told the Global Times that the disturbances caused by the plasticizer scandal will not last long, but are likely to strengthen authorities' supervision of liquor quality and improve the production process.