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Italian wine in the US, consumption down. UIV Observatory: sales down in August, bubbles doing well

According to surveys, sparkling wines drive sales and now represent 35% of exports to the United States: Prosecco is booming

The United States is the topmost important market for Italian wine exports. However, the news is not at all encouraging as far as consumption goes. The UIV - Unione Italiana Vini Observatory, based on Sipsource, that August was“ one of the worst months in the last two years (-13%) for wine sales in general”, and the cumulative figure from January is down -8% in volume. Thanks to sparkling wines, though, Italy is trying hard to show the glass half full, but only because its competitors’ performances are worse. The 8 month partial for Italy, according to the UIV evaluations on the American distributors platform, was -5.7% in volume and -4.4% in value, against the general consumption average, down -8.3% and -7.4%, respectively. Sparkling wine is the only category that has succeeded in reducing the decline of Italian sales. In spite of a slight drop in August (-1.5%, much less than the general Italian sales drop to -8.8%), they were still positive in the first 8 months (+1.5%). The still wines situation is very different, however, as white wines (-13% in August) and red wines paired at -8%, while rosés went down to -11%.
According to the UIV Observatory findings, sparkling wines are driving sales and now represent 35% of Italian wine sales in the United States compared to a general share of sparkling wines in the USA fixed at 9%. The Italian bubbles typology, thanks to wine cocktails, is growing in spite of everything, and is totally in contrast to the overall sparkling wine market (-7.4% volume) and French Champagne, in the red at -13%. Sparkling wines and Prosecco are the top performers, and as the UIV explained, are the best-selling Italian product overseas. This year Asolo Prosecco (volumes up 15%) and Prosecco Treviso (+6%) are leading, while Prosecco DOC is dropping and has lost almost 6 points. On the other hand, it is difficult to find positive signs among the still denominations most in demand in US commercial establishments. Apart from Brunello di Montalcino, which is growing (+5%) and Chianti Classico, which is stable, volumes marketed are negative for all the main Made in Italy wines: Chianti DOCG (-16%), DOC Toscana(-13%), Pinot Grigio delle Venezie (-9%) and Barolo (-6%).
“Export numbers to the USA indicated a rather solid positive sign in July”, Paolo Castelletti, UIV Secretary General, said, “on the other hand, though, the persistent decline in actual products released for consumption has sounded a rather serious alarm. We hope that now, because of rate cuts and the imminent Presidential elections, there may be signs of a turnaround on a market that is heavily conditioned by the fall in purchasing power. This situation finds confirmation in the fact that in August consumption of our wines in the on-premise sector sank to -15%”.

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