French wine and spirit exports fell last year on US hangover

Marie Brizard Wine and Spirits SA

13/02/2024 09:30

By Gus Trompiz
       PARIS, Feb 13 (Reuters) - French exports of wine and
spirits fell last year from a post-COVID peak as inflation
clipped consumer demand and distributors in the lucrative U.S.
market cleared existing stocks, industry group FEVS said.
    Wine and spirits are one of France's biggest export earners.
The sector has become increasingly reliant on foreign sales as
declining domestic consumption has hit some production areas
such as Bordeaux, contributing to recent protests by farmers.
    Total French exports of wine and spirits reached 16.2
billion euros ($17.5 billion) last year, down almost 6% from a
record level in 2022, the Federation of French Wine and Spirits
Exporters (FEVS) said in an annual update.
    The 2023 sales nonetheless represented the second-highest on
record in what FEVS called a "soft landing" after a surge in
demand following the COVID-19 pandemic.
    French exports fell more sharply in volume terms last year,
with a decline of more than 10%, FEVS said.
    In the United States, by far the largest export market for
French wine and spirits, de-stocking by distributors contributed
to a 22% drop in imports from France to 3.6 billion euros.
    "Most of the fall in export value in 2023 versus 2022 is
from the American market," FEVS Chairman Gabriel Picard told
Reuters.  
    In China, a faltering economy dampened hopes of a surge in
overall demand after the country wound down COVID-related
restrictions, with imports from France down more than 6% at 1.2
billion euros.
    But the reopening of venues such as bars and restaurants did
support a slight increase in spirits sales in China, notably
cognac, FEVS said.
    "Expectations exceeded reality but the reality was similar
to 2022," Picard said of China.
    For 2024, wine and spirits faced economic and political
uncertainty like other sectors, but the ending of the
de-stocking phase in the U.S. market was a cause for optimism,
Picard said.
    China's launch last month of an anti-dumping investigation
into European Union brandy was a risk while the industry was
mindful of the possibility of Donald Trump, who previously
imposed taxes on European wines, returning as U.S. President, he
said.
    "More than ever, we need the support of our authorities, who
must not think that the good export performances of wine and
spirits are a perpetual achievement," he said of trade issues.
 ($1 = 0.9276 euros)

 (Reporting by Gus Trompiz
Editing by Keith Weir)
 ((gus.trompiz@thomsonreuters.com; +33 1 49 49 52 18; Reuters
Messaging: gus.trompiz.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))