THE FUTURE OF THE GLOBAL WINE BUSINESS INCREASINGLY DEPENDS ON EXPORTS, ON THE MATURE, STABLE, EMERGING AND NEW EMERGING MARKETS. HERE IS THE REPORT BY THE ENGLISH RESEARCH AGENCY, WINE INTELLIGENCE

Italian wine exports are about to reach a record in 2015 (we are moving towards the 5.4 billion euros mark, up 6% on 2014, reveals Wine Monitor - Nomisma). Since it is the end of the year and since half the turnover of the Italian wine sector depends on foreign markets, it is interesting to look at their state of health, to better understand where and how to move in the future, and the British research agency Wine Intelligence has compiled such a report.

According to the report, the "mature" markets; i.e. where the wine market is largely saturated, if not slightly declining, like Italy, France, Spain, Germany, Austria, Hungary, Portugal, Romania, Greece, Slovenia, Chile and Argentina. Most of these countries are the top wine producers in the world. Then there are the "stable" markets that after years of continued growth are gradually slowing down. The Wine Intelligence report includes the UK in first place, then the Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Belgium, Luxembourg, Ireland, Switzerland, but also Australia and New Zealand.

The good news for the major wine producing countries, and Italy in particular, is that among the "emerging" markets, where wine has been on the market for years and is becoming more and more a consumer product, there is the United States, the number one wine market in the world and where Italy leads in volume and value among foreign wines. This group also includes other markets where Italy leads in wine, such as Japan and Canada, Hong Kong and South Africa. These are the reliable markets to bet on in the future. There is, however, a large group of markets considered "emerging", where wine is not yet a mass product and part of everyday consumers’ shopping list, but has been showing constant growth and great potential, even though their numbers are still relatively low.
This category includes, beyond political and economic issues, China, Russia and Brazil and in Europe Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia in Asia South Korea, Singapore and Taiwan, in South America Colombia, Mexico and Peru, in Africa Angola and the United Arab Emirates in the Middle East. And then there are the "new emerging markets”, those in which “wine is still largely unknown, but they are showing some interesting signals”, says Wine Intelligence. These countries include Malaysia, Turkey, India, Vietnam, the Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia and Nigeria. These are the real bets for the future of the wine market...