A senior director from Diageo, the world-leading premium drinks business operator, recently revealed that Diageo is aiming to build its whisky brand Johnnie Walker to a market leader in China, and that therefore signals a competition with its big rival, Pernod Ricard who now owns the biggest shares in China's foreign-brand spirit market with its top brands including Chivas Regal and Martell.

Pernod Ricard is the second largest operator in spirits and wine worldwide.

According to statistics, currently, 99% of China's alcoholic liquor market is made up of white spirit, while the foreign spirits brands take up only 1% of the market share, which also leaves big market space for them in the future China market.

In 2004, eastern China's Shanghai customs had seen a total of foreign-brand spirits import by means of general trade of USD 152 million, rising nearly 70% than the previous year and accounting for 77% of the country's entire foreign-brand spirits import value.

It is forecasted that Shanghai's spirits sales by this year-end can go up 16% year on year and reach 2,100 kiloliters.