PARIS: France has been the big winner among wine producing countries in the first quarter, while the US suffered a major drop in overseas sales. The figures released in the Rabobank Wine Quarterly survey showed healthy growth for French wine exports, which increased by 5.9 percent in volume and a whopping 14.7 percent in value, giving an average price-per-liter rise of 8 percent. Champagne did well with 7.3 percent volume and 12.1 percent value increases, while Bordeaux continued its strong growth with a 10.7 percent rise in volume and a staggering 26.4 percent leap in value. The US and Chinese markets saw solid growth for French wines, even exports to the embattled UK market rose by 2.9 percent in volume and 13.8 percent in value. US wine producers weren’t so lucky, with a big drop in sales to the UK leading to a steep 15 percent decline in volume and an 8 percent fall in value. Bulk sales also fell as own-label brands contracted in the softening economic conditions in the UK; an almost 3 percent rise in inflation there has pushed down earnings and weakened the outlook for consumption.
First quarter exports of Italian wine lifted slightly by volume (2 percent) and 5.4 percent in value against the last quarter of 2016, with sparkling wine the star performer. Still wine exports to major markets the US, Germany and Switzerland contracted slightly in volume, but sparkling wines jumped 10.8 percent in volume to all markets and 15.1 percent in value. Canada and China were growth markets, as was the UK, although the average price per liter to the UK fell by 3.5 percent. Spain had a mixed performance, with DO/DOCa wines jumping 16.2 percent in volume and an impressive 47 percent in value, while sparkling wine saw double-digit drops in per-liter average prices. Spain’s main export market was still the US, with 4.3 percent volume and 6.5 percent value increases. While US exports might have softened, imports rose in the first four months of the year, with a 2 percent volume lift and a 6 percent increase in value compared to the same period last year. Imports from Italy were up 3 percent by volume and 2 percent in value, led by Prosecco’s seemingly unstoppable surge. Portugal was the big winner, however, with a 21 percent increase in volumes shipped to the US and a 26 percent rise in value. Australia grew value off lower volumes, with a 13 percent jump in value despite a 1.6 percent drop in volume. The report also said that wine inventories were likely to come under some pressure later this year, as a predicted shortfall in the Northern Hemisphere harvest impacts global supply. While it pointed to sufficient stocks of wine to meet current demand, the report warned of reduced volumes coming from major producers France, northern Italy and Spain, due to adverse weather.