Exports to China and US boost Australian overseas sales
Australian wine exports have increased by 10% in the past year, boosted by strong sales to the US and China.
As the fifth biggest wine exporter after France, Italy, Spain and Chile, Australia outstripped its rivals in its rate of export growth, according to Wine Australia's Export Report which was released today (July 19th).
“Pleasingly, nearly all price points experienced growth and there were benefits for exporters in all segments of the market,” said Wine Australia chief executive officer Andreas Clark.
Premium wines experienced the strongest growth, with all price categories above $10 per litre experiencing growth, with the most impressive growth seen in the $30 and $49.99 per litre price bracket, which shot up by 70%. . The second biggest growth was recorded amongst wines priced at over $200, where exports were up by 32%. Next came those wines priced between $100 and $199 which experienced a 43% uplift in sales, while wines in the $20 to $29.99 price bracket recorded a 26% increase in sales.
Growth was not confined to premium wines however; wines priced at $2.49 and under shot up by 17%, while those in the $5 to $7.49 price bracket jumped by 10%.
The only price category to experience a drop in value were amongst those wines priced between $7.50 and $9.99 which dipped by 5%
Not only did exports increase in the past 12 months, but there was also a record number of winemakers exporting their products– 1997 – with 69% of them contributing to the total increase in value of exports.
“An interesting development from last year was the growth in the carbonated wine category, which includes varieties such as Moscato,” noted Clark. This sector's exports more than doubled to $30m, with the US the biggest destination for carbonated wines, accounting for 35% of the market, followed by mainland China, representing 15% and Japan 14%.
The biggest increase in exports was to China, which Wine Australia says “has been at the hub of the revival of Australian wine exports.” In the past year, exports to Greater China soared by 33% to reach $721m, helped in no small part by the implementation of the China-Australia Free Trade Agreement at the end of 2015, providing impetus to an already strong market.
Exports to Northeast Asia as a whole increased 29% by $178 to a record $797,while Southeast Asia was the next fastest growing region with exports jumping by 14% or $20m to reach $162m. Exports to North America also inched up by 1% to $651m, while the Middle East recorded an 18% increase to a record $22m.
The only regions to record a drop in exports was Europe, where sales slid by 1% to 568m, and Oceania, which also dipped by 1% to $87m.
Meanwhile, exports to the US were up by 3% to $464m, the highest value since 2011 – 2012, with the increase in value driven by white wine sales, which were up by 3% to $181m, and carbonated wine up 10 fold to $11m.
The US is the largest export market for Australian Pinot Grigo, accounting for three quarters of the category’s exports, which grew by 16% to $24m last year.
The UK remains Australia’s number one export market by volume, with more Australian wines shipped to there than any other country in the world. However, the total value of exports to the UK dropped by 7% to $341m, though there was very strong growth in exports at the higher end, with exports priced at more than $10 per litre jumping to 13% to $28.
Australia’s top five export markets accounted for 74 per cent of the value of Australian exports ·
Mainland China – $607 million ▲44%
US – $464 million ▲3%
UK – $341 million ▼7%
Canada – $186 million ▼5%
Hong Kong – $114 million ▼8%.