Slow demand hits exports of French wine, spirits

Paris — French wine and spirits exports fell for a second consecutive year in 2024, hit by weaker demand for premium vintages as the industry grapples with lower prices, a softer Chinese market and tariff threats, industry group FEVS said on Tuesday.

Exports of French wines and spirits totalled €15.6bn last year, a 4% decline from 2023, despite stable volumes at 174-million cases of 12 bottles, the Federation of Wine and Spirits Exporters said.

China led the drop in value, with its imports down 20% year on year, while smaller markets Singapore and Hong Kong also recorded falls of 25% and 12%, respectively. With exports totalling €2.1bn, the three accounted for 90% of last year’s fall.

French spirits exports were hardest hit last year, falling 6.5% to €4.5bn, largely due to China’s economic struggles and Beijing’s anti-dumping measures on European brandy, chiefly French Cognac.

Cognac sales dropped 11% in value. However, volume dipped just 1%, supported by restocking in the US and precautionary purchases amid fears of new US tariffs on French wine, FEVS chair Gabriel Picard said.

Producers have also attributed the gap between value and volume to a shift towards younger, cheaper Cognac.

Wine and spirits shipments to the US, France’s largest export market, rose 5% to €3.8bn.

In the wine sector, volumes edged 0.7% higher, but revenue dropped 3% to €10.9bn, weighed down by an 8% decline in Champagne sales.

“For the coming year, we face two major uncertainties: China and the US. However, there is a feeling that the worst is never certain,” Picard said.

“In the US if we set aside the risk of possible taxes there are still relatively reassuring economic fundamentals,” he said.

On China, he praised France’s efforts to defend the Cognac sector but called for “concrete action” ahead of an expected visit by Prime Minister Francois Bayrou to ease trade tensions.

Reuters