Italian wine exports are positive in the first semester of 2024: +3.1% value and +2.5% volume

Grape harvests are ongoing, and the Italian wine sector is looking confidently at the “export” item. At the halfway point of 2024, and for the 6th consecutive month, Italy’s wine exports to the world show a positive trend, but a lower percentage than in the most recent survey. At any rate, considering all the difficulties the sector is facing, numbers give us hope. The market trend does not allow for wide-ranging forecasts, but knowing that the sector, globally, is generally healthy at the start of the wine season is definitely a good omen. According to the Italian statistics institute, ISTAT data on the first half of the year, updated to today and analyzed by WineNews, regarding the period from January to June 2024, Italian wine exports globally exceeded 3.8 billion euros (+3.1% in value compared to the same period in 2023; it was +4.9% in May), and 1.064 billion liters (+2.5% in volume compared to the first half of 2023; it was +5% in the five-month survey of 2024). Almost all of Italy’s main trading partners have increased their flow of imports compared to the same period a year ago, except for France and Switzerland, first and foremost (as in May 2024).
The United States has reconfirmed it is Italy’s leading wine partner. Exports in value reached 938.8 million euros (+4.6% compared to the first half of 2023, slightly down compared to May, when it was +5.5%), followed by Germany - the leading European market for Italy - which in the first six months of 2024 imported 583.9 million euros in value (+1.1% compared to the same period last year, almost the same as in May, when it was +1.2%). Third place goes to the United Kingdom, which is continuing to grow, and so far has reached 387.8 million euros (+1.96% compared to a year ago, while in May it was +6%). Stable in fourth place, Switzerland, which however, has been on a decline for several months, registering exports for a value of 194.1 million euros (-5.4%). The Swiss market is being threatened by Canada, an extra-continental market worth 175.2 million euros for Italy, even though compared to a year ago the growth is essentially zero (+0.1).
France is slowing down once again, importing Italian wine for a value of 155.2 million euros, but it is down -6.3% compared to the first half of last year. The Netherlands is still growing, and it is one of the best performing markets for Italian wine exports, registering 124 million euros (+6.2%). However, it is being threatened by Russia, which is by far the Country that has been performing the best for some time now. In the period from January to May 2024 imports reached 121 million euros (+79.8% compared to a year ago). Belgium follows, though it is down, at 107.3 million euros (-3.8%), and so is Sweden, at 99.6 million euros (-3.5%). The percentage variations return to positive in Japan, at 94.6 million euros (+2.5%), Austria, at 78.8 million euros (+20.4%), and Denmark, at 75.4 million euros (+3.3%). However, China and South Korea are still both down, as exports are worth 43 million euros (-10.8%) and 26 million euros (-7.5%), respectively.