China Poised to Challenge Europe in Wine Exports, Says Research

LONDON, January 8, 2014 /PRNewswire/ --

The European wine sector will eventually have to battle with China in the international wine market, according to new wine industry market research from market commentator just-drinks.com.

Although China currently exports only around 100,000 hectolitres of wine a year, a report, entitled 'The Post-Recessionary Face of the West European Wine Market', states that the country is already a top-ten global wine producer and consumer. "China presents little threat currently to the world wine trade," says just-drinks.com in the report, "but a time will come where production exceeds domestic needs, thereby adding to the growing competition faced by Western Europe on the world stage."

For the time being, however, rising domestic consumption means China's value as a market "offering huge export potential" overshadows the challenge that the country's growing wine industry may pose to the established wine-producing countries. Wine consumption in China has grown by 57% over the past ten years to 17.8bn hectolitres in 2012, the report has found. "At the same time imports have grown exponentially."

Increased competition from China in the future represents an unwelcome threat to the European wine sector, which has seen its share of the world wine market decline in recent years. In 1995, France, Italy and Spain together represented around 52% of the global wine supply, according to the report. Ten years later, that figure had fallen to 50% and it now stands at a new low of 44%.

"European viticulture is facing intensifying competition through a mix of increasing trade liberalisation and the rise of the New World wine producers," the report states.

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About just-drinks.com

Established in 1999, just-drinks is a leading online resource for the global beverage industry, publishing around 20 news articles, analysis features and insights every working day. Under the direction of managing editor Olly Wehring, its experienced team of journalists, consultants and analysts provide a unique and comprehensive blend of reports and interpretation of the beverage industry, including key events, trends, interviews and research that are delivered to over 92,000 business executives per month.

Through its web site, webinars and in-depth management briefings just-drinks offers insight into soft drinks, wine, beer, spirits and bottled water industry developments and supply-chain trends, brand and corporate strategies, CONSULT research platform, enterprise technologies such as PLM and ERP.

Furthermore, just-drinks supplies news on manufacturing developments and how the drinks industry is performing around the world.

For details of how just-drinks is helping decision makers make decisions, visit http://www.just-drinks.com.

For further information and images please contact John Newton, Public Relations at Aroq Limited on +44(0)1527-573-734, email john.newton@aroq.com.