Feitian Moutai raises prices again after eight years, a dual pursuit of value return and market principles

Ask AI · How does this pricing adjustment reflect Feitian Moutai’s return to value?

Author: Shunan

On the evening of March 30, 2026, an announcement from Moutai in Guizhou broke the calm of the capital markets.

The announcement shows that, effective March 31, 2026, the contract price for the company’s core large single product Feitian 53% / 500ml Moutai Liquor (2026) will be adjusted from 1169 yuan per bottle to 1269 yuan per bottle. At the same time, the retail price within the self-operated system, which has remained at 1499 yuan per bottle for more than eight years, will be adjusted to 1539 yuan per bottle.

This is not the first time Moutai has adjusted its prices in recent years. In November 2023, Moutai raised its ex-factory price from 969 yuan by about 20% to 1169 yuan, but at that time it did not touch the “1499” red line that is most sensitive to consumers. This time, however, the contract price and retail price both increased simultaneously, which industry insiders interpret as Moutai acting in step with market supply-and-demand rules—an overdue “return to value.”

**** Feitian Moutai’s return to value****

For many ordinary consumers, “buying Feitian Moutai for 1499 yuan” used to feel like a legendary symbol. Although the official guidance price has long been set at 1499 yuan, for the vast majority of the past years, consumers could hardly buy spot inventory at that price in the terminal market. The huge gap between supply and demand has caused actual transaction prices to stay far above the guidance price for years, resulting in a de facto “two-track” pricing system.

While this price spread helps maintain Moutai’s image of scarcity in the short term, it also plants hidden risks such as channel speculation and hoarding.

“Us old shareholders, we’re never worried that Moutai’s price hikes will affect sales. What we’re truly worried about is that the long-standing price gap may instead trigger disorder in the channels.” In investment communities such as Xueqiu, discussions about Moutai’s price adjustment have continued to heat up. A private fund manager who has held a heavy position in Moutai for many years said frankly, “A price adjustment is a restoration of the brand’s value, and it’s also an explanation to long-term holders.”

How long has it been since Moutai last raised prices? This is a question that the industry has chewed over repeatedly. Since it raised the ex-factory price in November 2023, it has been nearly three years. As for the last adjustment to the market retail price, it dates back even further—to January 2018, when it was raised from 1299 yuan to 1499 yuan—more than eight years ago.

Over the past eight years, China’s total GDP has crossed the one-hundred-trillion-yuan mark, and residents’ per-capita disposable income has grown steadily, while Moutai’s official “tag price” seems as if it has been paused. At the same time, Moutai liquor has consistently been in short supply in the terminal market. This divergence in fundamentals makes “price increases” almost inevitable, like a mathematical problem.

“For so many years without moving prices, products with demand should reflect their value.” A senior industry professional who has followed the liquor industry for a long time commented. In his view, price is not only the currency expression of a product, but also a direct reflection of the market supply-and-demand relationship. Keeping the official positioning below actual transaction prices for the long term has not suppressed real purchasing costs; instead, it allows intermediaries to earn excess profits far beyond reasonable levels.

In this round of pricing adjustment, the contract price for distributors rose from 1169 yuan to 1269 yuan, an increase of about 8.55%. The self-operated retail price rose from 1499 yuan to 1539 yuan, an increase of about 2.7%. It is worth noting that recently, the market批价 (trading appraisal price) for Feitian Moutai has already fallen back to around 1550 yuan, and the price of loose bottles is even lower. This means the gap between the official guidance price and the real market price is shrinking rapidly.

This is precisely what makes the timing of this pricing adjustment so well judged. Moutai did not choose to raise prices during the frenzied period when terminal prices were being bid up to above 3000 yuan. Instead, it pressed the pricing adjustment button mildly at a time when the industry is adjusting, market sentiment is returning to rationality, and批价 and retail prices are nearing overlap.

** A “shot of adrenaline” for the liquor industry**

If the internal reason for this price adjustment is to sort out the channels and return to market rules, then meeting shareholders’ long-term demands and thickening the company’s performance are its most direct external manifestations.

In the context of the capital markets, Kweichow Moutai is not only the “keystone” for A-share circulating market value, but also a benchmark for value investing. However, in recent years, faced with the huge “plan” versus “market” price gap, many long-term shareholders’ mindset has become subtle.

“Maybe Moutai should consider gently raising prices every year—what about increasing 5%–8% each year? Moutai has the ability to raise prices.” Noted investor Duan Yongping has repeatedly publicly expressed support for Moutai’s price hikes, and his core logic is both respect for market rules and responsibility to shareholders’ interests.

For a long time, some investors have been concerned that a large channel profit margin not only fattens speculators, but also embeds risks of uncertainty into business operations. Once the industry cools off, the “blocked dam” of channel inventory could collapse at any time and反噬 the listed company. And this pricing adjustment has been viewed as a positive response from Moutai’s management to shareholders’ demands.

From a financial perspective, this 100-yuan increase in contract price will directly affect Moutai’s income statement. For a company like Moutai that has almost no accounts receivable and relatively stable production and sales, the profit increase brought by the price hike is certain. Multiple securities research institutions believe this will help the company’s performance become even more robust, and the effect on boosting earnings per share will be most pronounced in the industry.

More importantly, this kind of price hike is happening against the backdrop of the industry’s overall “bubble compression.” The lingering chill from the 2026 spring China sugar, wine and spirits fair has not yet dissipated, and the liquor industry generally faces the difficulties of high inventory and price inversion. At a time when most liquor companies even need to cut prices to maintain volume, Moutai’s courage to raise prices “counter to the cycle” is itself a reflection of the brand’s hard strength, greatly boosting confidence in both the channels and the capital markets.

“By setting prices higher and making room in the middle, Moutai not only leads the industry into a healthy cycle, but also prevents the entire industry from falling into low-price disorder and involution.” Industry insiders analyze that, as the absolute anchor of the liquor industry, when Moutai raises its ex-factory price and guidance price, it directly opens up pricing ranges for high-end, mid-high-end, and even mid-range liquor, alleviating the long-standing predicament of price compression.

When Moutai’s “ceiling” moves upward, other high-end liquor brands gain greater room for price maneuvering, no longer needing to engage in brutal, close-quarters price fighting in the 1000-yuan price band. Mid-high-end and regional famous brands can also ride the trend to straighten out pricing bands and realize product upgrades. This “tiered and orderly” pattern of “rising both volumes and prices” driven by the leader is exactly the healthy scenario that the liquor industry most desperately wants right now to restore confidence.

Clearly, what Moutai is doing is not just a price hike—it is also an iteration of its approach to governance. Align prices with value, and let the brand return to the market. When the price system of Moutai liquor moves in a reasonable way with the market’s pulse, this liquor giant not only creates tangible benefits for long-term shareholders, but also kindles a flame of rebuilding confidence through the industry’s winter.

As industry insiders have said, products with demand should properly reflect their value. Moutai’s price increase this round is both a basic respect for market rules and a high-level balance of the interests of consumers, investors, and channel partners.