NEW YORK -- While the last month of 2017 was kind to sales of energy drinks, bottled water and sports drinks, even Christmas couldn't boost beer trends. Those are top-line conclusions from Nielsen scan data from all retail channels for the four-week period ending Dec. 30.
Here's a look at how the major categories fared during the month ...
Energy drinks found their way back to mid-single-digit growth during the month, according to a Wells Fargo Securities report. That sales growth during December was led by Monster Beverage Corp., which saw volume sales up 11.2%, according to Nielsen. Red Bull sales were up 3.7% during the period. The full category grew 2.2% during 2017, about half of the previous year's 4.3% sales growth and well below 2015's 10.5% growth.
Total retail beer volume sales were down 1.6%, about on par with a 12-week trend of negative 2.0% and a 52-week trend of negative 0.9%. The bright spot in the beer category remains imported beer, up 3.1% in volume during the four-week period and 5.4% for the full year, led by Constellation Brands, Chicago, which grew volume sales 11.1% for the year.
Regular (full-calorie) beer saw unit sales dip 1.2% during December, compared to a 2.4% sales decline for light beer. Sales of all domestic beers were down 2.7%, craft beer was flat and cider sales dropped 3.2%.
Bottled water had a strong month, with total volume sales up 7.6% for the four-week period, compared to 5.4% for the full year. Sparkling flavored water saw the strongest growth, up 19.7% for the month, and still flavored water performed well, too, up 11.0% for the four-week period.
Carbonated soft drinks (CSDs) continued to decline, though at a slightly slower rate. During December, unit sales dipped 2.3%, compared to negative 3.2% for the past 12 weeks and negative 3.0% for the full year. Sales of regular soft drinks were down 2.0%, while diet sodas were down 3.2%.
In other beverage categories:
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