The value of Australian wine exports increased by 16 per cent to $2.65 billion, its highest value in a decade, and the volume of exports grew 10 per cent to a near-record level of 844 million litres in the year ended March 2018, according to Wine Australia’s Export Report released yesterday.
As value growth outpaced volume growth, the average value increased by 5 per cent to $3.14 per litre.
Regions experiencing export growth
Many Australian wine regions experienced growth in the value of exports in the 12 months to the end of March 2018.
Bottled exports with a Barossa Valley label claim increased by 28 per cent to $87 million, Coonawarra by 77 per cent to $47 million and Margaret River by 2 per cent to $31 million.
While most regions had an outstanding year with exports to China, exports to the United States of America also increased for Margaret River by 13 per cent to $5 million, Victoria by 33 per cent to $2.4 million and Clare Valley by 28 per cent to $1.3 million.
Exports to the United Kingdom increased from the Adelaide Hills by 2 per cent to $4 million, Limestone Coast by 3 per cent to $3 million and Yarra Valley by 22 per cent to $2.4 million, based on the label claims made on bottled wine exports.
Export reports for these regions and others can be found on the Australian Regional Export Reports page (for levy payers only).
Bottled and bulk export values in growth
The value of bottled wine increased by 15 per cent to $2.15 billion, the highest value since the same period in 2009. The volume of bottled wine exports increased by 10 per cent to 374 million litres, leading to an all-time-high average value of $5.74 per litre.
Exports of wine in bulk containers hit record highs in both volume and value, up 10 per cent in volume to 462 million litres and 19 per cent in value to $486 million. Average value per litre increased by 8 per cent to $1.05, the highest level since 2009. Supply pressures from historically low Northern Hemisphere harvests are driving the demand for Australian wine to fill the market gaps, increasing both volume and the average value of exported bulk wine.
Healthy growth at nearly all price points
There was healthy growth at nearly all price points, as illustrated in Figure 1. Wines priced at $10 a litre and above reached a record level of $779 million, increasing by 30 per cent during the year.
Figure 2: Value growth by region (Million AUD FOB)
Northeast Asia driving growth
Exports to Northeast Asia continued their record-breaking run, growing by 46 per cent to $1.12 billion.
The main destination behind the growth in Northeast Asia was exports to China including Hong and Macau. Exports to this destination increased by 51 per cent to a record $1.04 billion. This is the first time that Australia has shipped $1 billion of wine to one country.
Other regions that experienced growth included:
- Europe, by 5 per cent to $596 million
- Oceania, by 7 per cent to $93 million
- Middle East, by 30 per cent to $28 million.
