GERMANY IS THE SECOND MARKET FOR ITALIAN WINE, BUT IN 2015 IMPORTS DROPPED 3.6% IN VALUE COMPARED TO 2014, CLOSING AT 2.47 BILLION EUROS, REVEALED THE GLOBAL TRADE ATLAS DATA ANALYZED BY THE ITALIAN TRADE AGENCY

Germany, population 82 million is the second most important market for Italian wines, after the United States and in 2014 absorbed 19.1% of the total value of Italian exports in the sector. In 2015, though, wine imports on the German market dropped 3.6% in value compared to 2014, closing the year at 2.47 billion euros, revealed the latest Global Trade Atlas data (www.gtis.com), analyzed by the Italian Trade Agency (www.ice.gov.it) just before ProWein was held in Dusseldorf March 13-15th (www.prowein.com). Italian wines weigh 35.9% confirming their leadership, despite a 2.4% decrease, for a total value of 888 million euros.
France came in second, behind Italy, at 680.7 million euros, marking a considerably higher drop compared to imports in 2014, equal to 12%, followed by Spain, the only big winemaking country that grew, though a mere 2% to 386.2 million euros, for a market share of 15.6%. Then followed, at minimal percentages (between 2 and 4%), the United States, South Africa, Chile, Austria and Australia.
Italian bottled wines dominated imports in Germany with 77% (they have grown 12.1% between 2011 and 2015), while bulk wine was 14.7% and sparkling wines 8%. Red and rosé PDO and PGI wines were the top performers in the category at 43.9% of total imports, 389.6 million euros in value (+ 4.6% over 2014 and + 28.6% over 2011), followed by white PDO and PGI wines at 20.4% of total imports, semi-sparkling wines (12.2%) and sparkling wines (8%).