New Zealand wine exports hit $199m in August, highest monthly total this year

Wine exports reached 199.2 million dollars in August 2021, the strongest monthly performance of the year to date, driven by shipments of 29.0 million litres at an average price of 6.87 dollars per litre.

Record monthly value for 2021

New Zealand exported 199.2 million dollars worth of wine (HS 2204) in August 2021, surpassing July's 189.8 million dollars to claim the highest monthly total recorded so far this calendar year. The 29.0 million litres shipped achieved an average unit price of 6.87 dollars per litre.

The August result continues a strong second half of the year, with exports climbing sharply from the 114.2 million dollar low point in April. Rolling 12-month exports to August 2021 totalled 1.199 billion dollars.

Year-over-year comparison unavailable

Year-over-year comparisons for August are not available in this release, preventing direct assessment of performance against the prior corresponding period. The dataset does not include percentage changes for either total value or volume metrics, nor for individual destination markets.

United States and United Kingdom lead diversified export base

The United States remained New Zealand's dominant wine market in August, absorbing 68.2 million dollars in shipments—a 34.3 per cent share of total exports. The United Kingdom followed with 45.9 million dollars (23.0 per cent), while Australia took 40.3 million dollars (20.2 per cent).

Together, these three markets accounted for more than three-quarters of New Zealand's wine export value for the month.

Canada ranked fourth with 11.5 million dollars (5.8 per cent), followed by Ireland at 5.0 million dollars (2.5 per cent). Germany, China and Hong Kong collectively contributed 9.3 million dollars, with shipments also recorded to Russia, the Netherlands, South Korea and Japan among the top dozen markets.

New Zealand wine reached 54 destination markets during August, demonstrating the breadth of the industry's international distribution network.

Bulk wine accounts for more than a quarter of export value

Bulk wine shipped in containers exceeding 10 litres generated 53.0 million dollars in August, representing 26.6 per cent of total export value. Bottled wine in containers of two litres or less—including sparkling wine—accounted for 146.1 million dollars.

The packaging split reveals a substantial price differential: bottled wine averaged 9.04 dollars per litre, more than double the 4.14 dollars per litre achieved by bulk shipments. This 4.90 dollar gap reflects the value addition of bottling, packaging and brand positioning in premium consumer-ready formats, compared with bulk wine typically destined for overseas bottling operations or use as blend components.

The presence of bulk shipments worth more than 50 million dollars indicates ongoing demand for New Zealand wine as a blending and processing input in offshore markets, alongside the country's established reputation for finished bottled products.

Provisional data subject to revision

These figures are drawn from Statistics New Zealand's overseas trade data for August 2021. As with all recently released monthly trade statistics, the August figures are provisional and subject to revision as late declarations are processed and classifications are refined. Readers should note that subsequent publications may contain amended values.