News from the Australian Wine and Brandy Corporation (AWBC) confirms that the Australian wine export bandwagon continues to roll. In the calendar year 2002 sales increased by 30% to A$ 2.3 billion, representing a volume of 471 million litres shipped, an increase of 26%. Although this includes bulk wine sales, that volume equates numerically to around fifty million cases of wine. Lawrie Stanford, Manager of Information and Analysis at the Australian Wine and Brandy Corporation, says that ‘The past year has not been the easiest with fluctuating exchange rates for the Australian dollar, a slower US economy and global uncertainty all potentially affecting trade. In spite of these things, Australian wine exports have grown at a record rate which is very good news.’ The key to the success has been the growth in the US, where exports were up nearly 64% to A$ 741 million, accounting for 32% of export sales. With 39% of value, the UK remains Australia’s major overseas destination for wine, worth A$ 902 million to the industry. The US is the second largest destination, followed by Canada with A$ 150 million.
