Australian wine export values surge 20 per cent

AUSTRALIAN wine export values and volumes have significantly improved, with the value of wine exports up 20 per cent to $2.76 billion and export volumes up 10 per cent to 852 million litres a new record according to Wine Australia research.

Assistant Minister for Agriculture and Water Resources, Senator Anne Ruston, welcomed the growth detailed in the Wine Australia Export Report.

“Wine regions across Australia are benefiting from growing export opportunities,” Minister Ruston said.

“They are a win for the wine industry and a win for regional Australia, the Turnbull Government continues to back business to invest and create more jobs.”

Minister Ruston said it was the highest rate of growth in the value of wine exports in 15 years.

“The fact that both value and volumes of wine exports are growing, with values growing at twice the rate of volumes, shows that our international customers value our quality wines,” she said.

“From grape growers to winemakers there has never been so much support from an Australian Government with the Coalition’s $50 million Export and Regional Wine Support Package really starting to pay dividends.

“Australia’s free trade agreements are also opening up new market opportunities for our world famous wines.

“The market in China is continuing to expand with the value of wine exports up 55 per cent to $1.12 billion and volume up 47 per cent in the year to June 2018.”

Wine Australia Chief Executive Officer Andreas Clark said that the high quality of Australian wine plus historically low Northern Hemisphere harvests were driving the demand for Australian wine exported in bulk containers, leading to growth in both volume and the total value of exported bulk wine.

“Every country in Australia’s top 10 bulk wine destinations recorded an increase in average value, especially Germany, the largest importer of wine in the world, where average values for bulk wine increased by 20 per cent from $0.87 to $1.05 per litre.”

Mr Clark explained that wine exports to China had grown as wine tariffs had dropped again in January 2018, in line with the China–Australia Free Trade Agreement.

The tariff would be removed completely in January 2019, providing Australian wine exporters with a competitive advantage over key producers such as France, Italy and Spain.