Kinmen, March 2 (CNA) The No. 1 liquor brand in Taiwan, Kinmen Kaoliang Liquor Inc. (KKL), announced Tuesday a 6-12 percent price hike for some of its products with immediate effect, its first price hike in nine years.

In a press release, KKL, which boasts a share in excess of 80 percent in the nation's white spirit market, said it made the decision to reflect production cost increases, as it has not adjusted the prices of its products since Feb. 1, 2012.

Since then, the costs of ingredients and packaging materials have significantly increased and production costs were also raised after an amendment to the Labor Standards Act that requires employers to give their employees two days off per week went into place in 2017, KKL said.

The announcement, however, was met with protests from the company's regional dealers in the outlying island county of Kinmen, where KKL is based.

Many dealers told CNA that the hike was too high and questioned whether the price adjustment was proportionate to the increase in production costs or simply a move to increase revenue for the Kinmen County government, which owns 99 percent of KKL's shares.

The actual price rises were not announced.