UK Overtakes France as Biggest Wine Exporter to Hong Kong

London sells more French wine to Hong Kong than France does!

Import duties have been abolished and the UK has officially overtaken France as the biggest wine exporter to Hong Kong. This news has surprised a few, but that doesn’t mean Hong Kong has lost its signature taste for fine French wines.

The twist? London is actually a major hub of fine French Wine – and no one would deny Hong Kong’s appetite for Bordeaux. So, despite the fact that the UK is not a major wine-producing region, Hong Kong imports from Britain showed a huge annual increase during the first seven months of 2009:

Imports from Britain showed an annual 146% increase during the first seven months of 2009 to almost US$80 million from Jan-Jul 2009, which was around US 69.5 million for the whole of 2008. UK has increased its share of this wine market from 20% to 33%, while France’s has slipped from over 35% to 31.6% at around US $72 million for the comparable period. The fine, expensive French wines are exported from the UK, explaining the phenomenal increase in dollar value.

Australia, in third place this year, has an 8.7% share totalling US$ 21 million followed by the US, Chile, Switzerland and Italy.

What’s responsible for the steep increase? Abolishing import duties made the fine of course, expensive French wines we love so much coming to Hong Kong duty-free. We call that cause for celebration: let’s make a toast with our favorite Bordeaux – to fatter wallets!