Chinese imports of European wine boom

European wine imports to China are experiencing ‘dramatic’ growth, in both quantity and value, according to a Chinese news report this week.

French wine imports are expected to reach 53m hl this year – 6.1m hl more than in 2003, and 300,000hl more than the previous year,’ China Wines Information reported.

French imports also increased in value – 1.7bn in the first four months of 2006, showing year-on-year growth of 16.4%.

Meanwhile, German wine imports showed a 4% increase, with value over a 12-month period before April 2006 increasing by 11%.

Also from January to April, Italian wine imports to China increased by 96.9% – although the publication pointed out that ‘the quantity is still small.’

Written by Panos Kakaviatos