Distillers Myanmar
A one-page guide to Myanmar for the spirits trade: the country, its people, its economy and how it drinks.
At a glance
- Capital
- Naypyidaw
- Official languages
- Burmese
- Currency
- Myanmar kyat (MMK)
- Time zone
- UTC+6:30 (MMT)
- Area
- 676,578 km²
People
- Population
- 54.9 million (2025)
- Population growth
- 0.6% a year
- Living in towns and cities
- 30.6%
- Aged under 15
- 24.1%
- Aged 65 and over
- 7.5%
- Life expectancy
- 67.1 years
Economy
- GDP
- US$81.7 billion (2025)
- GDP per person
- US$1,489 (2025)
- Economic growth
- -2.0% (2025)
- Inflation
- 8.8% (2019)
Climate
Monsoon climate: coastal regions get over 5,000 mm of rain a year, the delta about 2,500 mm, the central dry zone under 1,000 mm; northern areas average about 21 C and coastal/delta areas reach about 32 C maximums.
Alcohol
- Alcohol is
- Legal
- Legal drinking age
- 18 for purchase (Child Law 1993 and Excise Act 1958, as cited by Wikipedia)
- Alcohol per adult a year
- 2.1 litres of pure alcohol (2019)
- What people drink
- Beer 26.9%, wine 0.9%, spirits 72.1% (2019)
- Traditional drinks
- Home-brewed rice, millet or corn drinks
Sources: World Bank (population, economy and demographics), WHO Global Health Observatory (alcohol per adult and drinking mix); Myanmar Brewery (Wikipedia); Myanmar (Wikipedia); Legal drinking age; World Bank country data; WHO Global status report on alcohol and health 2024 (via Wikipedia table); UN Comtrade public API, HS 2208; The Edge Malaysia - Thai Beverage acquires Grand Royal distilleries Myanmar; Frontier Myanmar - Thai conglomerate acquires 75% of Myanmar Distillery Co. Figures are the latest each source publishes; the year is shown beside each one.