EUROPEAN WINE PRODUCTION WILL BE 173 MILLION HECTOLITRES IN 2013-2014, INDICATE THE LATEST FORECASTS FROM THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION. SPAIN IS IN THE LEAD AT 42% GROWTH, FOLLOWED BY ITALY AND FRANCE. ROMANIA IS THE BIG SURPRISE.

The forecast of European Union Wine production for 2013-2014 is 173 million hectoliters, according to the latest European Commission estimates. This means there has been a 14.2% increase compared to the previous year, which had been particularly scarse. Spain leads with a production boom and an increase of 42% over 2012-2013 that reached 48.5 million hectoliters.

Italy follows more or less at the same level as a year ago, with 46.5 million hectoliters (+2%), and then France at 44.1 million hectoliters produced (+7%). Way behind the 3 giants there is, surprisingly, Romania, with 9.9 million hectoliters of wine produced, up as much as 65% over the previous year, followed by Germany at 8.4 million hectoliters of wine (+7%), Portugal at 6.32 million hectoliters, and finally Greece, at 3.7 million hectoliters (+19%).