Summary
A very buoyant period for imports in general and Mexican products in particular helped to deliver growth for the beer category, although mainstream domestic brands remain under pressure not only from imports but also from craft beer, cider and FABs. Seasonally adjusted retail sales were estimated to be up very slightly in the fourth quarter, but only when the increasingly significant online business is included. One of the warmest fourth quarters for many years undoubtedly helped to create positive momentum for beverage business.

Key Findings
- It was a very strong quarter for premium water, and this segment is increasingly looking like the “craft” segment of the water category

- In beer, once again it was the import and craft segments which lifted category sales, while the mainstream domestic beer market continued to underperform

- Acceleration in the trend towards alternative beverages and an increasingly rapid decline in at-home breakfast consumption derived the overall sales of white milk

- It was a very erratic year for tea consumption, driven by pricing fluctuations and also by the fact that consumers are moving towards higher quality, less frequent purchases

Synopsis
Canadean's USA Quarterly Beverage Tracker Q4-15 covering soft drinks, dairy drinks, hot drinks and alcoholic drinks is an essential tool for keeping up-to-date with the latest industry performance and developments on a quarterly basis, covering:

- Topline consumption volumes for Q4-2015 vs Q4-2014, moving annual totals (MAT), full year 2015 provisional data and 2016 forecasts for all beverage categories

- Carbonates consumption data for Q4-2015 vs Q4-2014, moving annual totals (MAT), full year 2015 provisional data and 2016 forecasts split by regular vs low calorie, and key flavour

- An economic mood indicator with an at a glance assessment of industry confidence levels, private label performance vs brands and price trends

- Insightful and valuable analysis of the drivers behind the latest quarterly trends and assumptions for full year 2016

Reasons To Buy
- Gain an in-depth understanding of the most up-to-date trends in the United States beverage industry to support and enhance your strategic planning

- Investigate the latest quarterly and emerging annual trends in United States to back your marketing initiatives

- Analyse the latest beverage category 2016 forecast projections to make well-informed decisions on the outlook in the marketplace for your company

- View a selection of the key quarterly new soft drinks product launches and identify competitor activity

- Access a quarterly Special Focus on a current industry 'hot topic' offering qualitative insight from local consultants to determine opportunities for product innovation