USA: wine imports grew in the first 3 months of 2025 (before tariffs). France soared, Italy followed

The wine market is getting more and more difficult to understand, including numbers. Considering the United States, which plays the lead role in the economic fate of the sector, is the number one foreign market for Italian wine, and obviously in the spotlight because of the tariffs issue, many contradictions have been emerging for some time. The people that monitor final consumption have been talking about a significant decline for some time, such as SipSource data or the Osservatorio di Unione Italiana Vini - UIV (based on Nielsen 1Q data). Export numbers to the USA continue to be positive, as the Italian statistics institute, ISTAT data revealed in the first 2 months of the year (though it is still in a slowdown trend), as well as data on the first quarter of 2025 from the Organización Interprofesional del Vino de España (OIVE). Wine imports from the United States, according to OIVE, in the first three months of the year (when tariffs were "only" threatened, since they have been effective, at 10%, starting at the beginning of April, and will continue to be at least until July 9th, ed.), grew +21.6% in value compared to the same period in 2024, reaching 1.7 billion euros, and + 3.9% in volume, totaling 328.4 million liters, while the average price per liter increased +17% to 5.32 euros. France registered an impressive increase, and is clearly in the leading position in value, at 723.9 million euros, +51% compared to the first 3 months of 2024. Italy followed at 548 million euros between January and March 2025, registering +17% increase, according to OIVE. Italy confirmed leadership in volume, at 93.1 million liters (+16.6%), ahead of France, at 52.4 million liters (+37.2%).
New Zealand is in third place in value, which however lost -19.5%, at 124.4 million euros. Canada came in third for volume (one of the first Countries in the world involved in the tariff war with the USA, ed.), at 42.8 million liters, at a -29% decrease.
According to OIVE data, the difference in average price between Italian and French wines has been confirmed enormous. French wines at 13.8 euros per liter, while Italian wines at 5.8 euros (still above average). In any case, OIVE pointed out, wine imports in the USA were positive comparing the 12 months between March 2024 and March 2025, at a net growth in value (+14.6%), to 6.5 billion euros, and significant stability in volume (+0.9%) at 1.2 billion liters.
An interesting fact is that in spite of the very low absolute values, growth of wine imports to the United Kingdom stands out, at +777% in value, 5.9 million euros, and +1.867% in volume, 914.844 liters.