Finnish state alcohol monopoly Alko said on Wednesday that its sales, measured in litres, dipped by 10 percent in 2022 compared to the year before.
The firm reported that customers bought a total of 80.3 million litres worth of drinks in 2022, some 9.9 percent less than in 2021.
The biggest decrease was seen on wine shelves, the sales of which dropped by 11.2 percent. Another shift in the sales of the grape product was that white wines outsold red wines for the first time since 2001.
Brewery product sales also fell by 10.2 percent while the amount of spirits that made it to shopping carts declined by 6.8 percent.
"The lifting of Covid restrictions has restored alcohol sales in the hospitality sector. Alcohol imports from abroad also begun to increase again. This is reflected in our sales," Alko's Executive Vice President Kari Pennanen said.
Pennanen added that inflation had pushed up the prices of Alko's products only moderately, by some 2.3 percent on average.