Wine exports up, but falling prices dent revenue

Wine exports up, but falling prices dent revenue
Ari Sharp

THE volume of Australian wine exports leapt 11 per cent in the year to February 28, but tumbling prices limited the increase in value to just 4 per cent, according to the Australian Wine and Brandy Corporation, the government's chief wine body.

The lower average price — down 6 per cent to $3.69 a litre — crimped export growth figures, and the effect was exacerbated by the shift towards bulk exports. More than 80 per cent of the volume growth in Australia's wine exports is in bulk rather than bottled form, and the average price for this segment of the market plummeted 14 per cent to $1.02 a litre, putting the squeeze on exporters' margins.

There was little growth in exports of the bottled product. While bottled red wine experienced growth of 3 per cent, exports of bottled white declined 1 per cent. Total bottled exports reached 542 million litres, a rise of 2 per cent.

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