Australia: Wine inventory high despite steady sales

Total sales of Australian wine were 11 percent above production in 2022-23 after the lowest wine production in 15 years, but were not enough to substantially reduce pressure on the historically high national wine inventory levels, according to Wine Australia’s Wine Production, Sales and Inventory Report 2023. Australian wine production was 964 million litres, the lowest since 2006-07 and the first time since then that it has fallen below 1 billion litres. Meanwhile sales of Australian wine remained steady at 1.07 billion litres, with a small increase in domestic sales countering a similar-sized decline in exports. Wine Australia manager, Market Insights, Peter Bailey said it was pleasing that sales had held steady this year despite difficult global conditions affecting all markets. “This is the first time in five years that total sales volume has remained steady on a year-on-year basis,” Mr Bailey said. “Sales of Australian wine have been decreasing in our domestic market and in ...