ITALIAN WINE & FOOD INSTITUTE: IN 2008 ITALIAN WINE EXPORTS TO THE U.S. FALL BY 6.5% IN QUANTITY (BUT UP 1% IN VALUE). IT REMAINS THE LEADING EXPORT COUNTRY. CAPUTO: “DAMAGES CONTAINED IN A DIFFICULT YEAR”

The data that was recently revealed by the Italian Wine & Food Institute speaks clearly: “in 2008 Italian wine exports to the U.S. registered a decrease in quantity and a slight increase in value. Italy has, therefore, contained the damages from a year that, in general, was certainly not characterized by an expansion of exports”. This was the announcement made recently by the institute’s president, Lucio Caputo.

More precisely, Italy registered a reduction in quantity of 6.5% in 2008 when compared to data from 2007, but slightly improved in value with a modest 1%. It is significant that the reduction of Italian exports was much more contained than that of its main competitors: Australia lost 5.5% in quantity and 13.7% in value, and France 12.9% in quantity but with a 6.5% increase in value.

Italy continues to maintain its leading position on the American market still holding a large slice of the import market (29.1% versus 24.3% for Australia and 12.4% for France) even if this quota has undergone a reduction of 1.4% from 2007.

Among the factors that have negatively influenced the Italian wine export market towards the United States, apart from the crisis that infected the global market at the end of 2008, President Caputo pointed out, “the notable increase in value of the euro, which has damaged and made exports less competitive especially during the first part of the year, as well as the modest promotional activities that have been done to support Italian wine exports - activities that are often dispersed throughout a series of useless, if not counter-productive, initiatives”.

This decrease has interested, in quantitative terms, the main export markets to the U.S. with the exceptions of Argentina and Chile, who, not being penalized by the euro and with already much lower prices have benefited from the difficult international situation.

Overall, in 2008, according to the Italian Wine & Food Institute Study Center, U.S. wine imports totalled 7,359,178 hectoliters for a value of 3,577,625,000 dollars (versus 7,521,790 hectoliters in 2007 with a total value of 3,551,383,000 dollars), for a decrease of 2.2% in quantity and an increase of 0.7% in value. The imports for Italian wine in 2008 totalled 2,145,154 hectoliters with a value of 1,131,327,000 dollars, versus 2,293,170 hectoliters at 1,119,787,000 dollars in 2007, for a decrease of 6.5% in quantity and an increase of 1% in value.

For imports from the other principle markets in 2008, Australia registered a total 1,790,691 hectoliters with a value of 578,144,000 dollars, for a decrease of 5.5% in quantity and 13.7% in value; France totalled 911,825 hectoliters with a value of 929,133,000 dollars, for a decrease of 12.9% in quantity but an increase of 6.5% in value: Argentina sent a total 708,875 hectoliters for a value of 156,059,000 dollars, with an increase of 11.3% in quantity and 29.8% in quality; and Chile totaled 616,328 hectoliters for a value of 179,188,000 dollars, for an increase of 11.2% in quantity and 1.4% in value.

The Italian Wine & Food Institute also revealed the notable variations in average prices of wine in 2008 at their production origin locations: the average price for a liter of Italian wine was 5.27 dollars (versus 4.88 dollars in 2007), French wines, $10.19 (versus 8.41), Australia, $3.23 (versus 3.53), Chile, $2.91 (versus 3.14), and Argentina $2.20 (versus 1.89).