U.S. wine exports in 2014 second highest on record
Date£º
2015-02-28 15:38 Source£º
LATimes Author:
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Exports of U.S. wine last year were the second-most valuable on record, reaching $1.49 billion in revenue, nearly all of it from California.
The European Union was the largest buyer of U.S. wine at $517 million, followed by Canada ($487 million) and Japan ($88 million), the Wine Institute said Wednesday.
About 90% of U.S. wine exports come from California.
A strong dollar and a slowdown at the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles over a labor dispute challenged exporters.
Still, the volume of exports last year rose to 116.9 million gallons, up from 115 million in 2013 when revenue reached a record $1.55 billion.
¡°With three back-to-back California vintages heralded for their high quality and size, we have the ability to meet consumer demand for our wines both in the U.S. and abroad,¡± said Robert Koch, president and chief executive of the San Francisco-based Wine Institute, a trade association that advocates for the wine industry. ¡°Despite our strong dollar and heavily subsidized foreign competition and their high tariffs, consumers worldwide are attracted to all things California.¡±
Exporters saw strong growth in Asian markets such as South Korea, Vietnam, Singapore and Taiwan.
However, sales to China, the fourth-biggest market for U.S. wine, slipped 7.6% to $71 million because of a corruption crackdown and austerity campaign launched by Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Exports to Hong Kong, American wine¡¯s fifth-biggest market and often a proxy for mainland China, also fell, by 10.7% to $69 million.
The value of U.S. wine exports have more than doubled in the last decade and have risen 64% since 2009.