TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Taiwan Tobacco and Liquor Corporation (TTL) said on Sunday (Dec. 18) that prices for some of its products may be adjusted after the Lunar New Year holiday.

The state-owned company is revisiting its pricing policy due to the rising cost of raw materials, said Chairman Ting Yen-che (丁彥哲), who added that the price of red label rice cooking wine will not increase. Rice wine is widely used in Taiwanese cuisine.

According to Ting, the cost of aluminum beverage cans has skyrocketed by 30% and that of malt has doubled. The soaring cost will be reflected in a number of products, including the Gold Medal Taiwan Beer line, which has seen a price freeze for two decades, according to China Times.

European beers have seen a 10%-15% rise in prices this year, while Japanese brands have become 10% more costly. Fruit beers produced by TTL are priced at 350 yen (US$2.57) in Japanese retailers compared to NT$40 (US$1.30) a unit in Taiwan, Ting pointed out.

TTL manufactures and distributes beer, kaoliang (sorghum) liquor, whisky, maotai, fruit wine and other types of liquor. One of the businesses hit by the latest import ban by Beijing over registration issues, the company has said it will seek to comply with Chinese rules without compromising Taiwan’s national dignity.