New Zealand wine exports surge 34% in August on strong UK demand and bulk shipments

Wine exports reached $215.9 million in August 2025, up 33.9% year-over-year, as volume jumped 51.6% and the United Kingdom more than doubled its purchases.

Headline figures

New Zealand exported $215.9 million of wine (HS 2204) in August 2025, shipped across 30.6 million litres. The average price was $7.05 per litre. The month's result represented a 33.9% increase in value and a 51.6% surge in volume compared with August 2024, when exports totalled $161.2 million.

The rolling 12-month total to August 2025 stood at $2,140.4 million, up 2.2% year-over-year, indicating modest annual growth despite the strong monthly performance.

Year-over-year context

August's result marked a significant acceleration from recent months. The $215.9 million total was the highest since March 2025, when exports reached $221.0 million, and comfortably exceeded the $161.5 million recorded in July. Volume growth substantially outpaced value growth, pointing to a shift in the product mix towards lower-priced formats.

New Zealand wine reached 61 destination markets during the month.

Destination markets: UK leads, Australia and Canada soften

The United Kingdom dominated August shipments, purchasing $60.0 million of New Zealand wine—a 153.8% year-over-year increase that gave it a 27.8% share of total exports. This surge propelled the UK narrowly ahead of the United States, which imported $57.5 million (up 18.5%) for a 26.6% share.

Australia remained the third-largest market at $30.4 million but slipped 2.6% year-over-year, capturing a 14.1% share. Canada, the fourth-largest destination, declined 10.9% to $18.7 million (8.6% share).

Strong growth came from several markets. China lifted purchases 83.5% to $6.4 million, South Korea jumped 105.9% to $5.2 million, and France rose 38.3% to $7.8 million. Singapore increased 48.7% to $3.6 million, while Hong Kong grew 29.7% to $2.1 million.

Smaller markets posted dramatic percentage gains: Thailand surged 1,234.2% to $0.7 million, Norway climbed 463.9% to $0.6 million, Latvia rose 454.9% to $0.8 million, the United Arab Emirates jumped 207.4% to $1.5 million, and Bulgaria increased 165.5% to $0.9 million.

Declines were concentrated in established markets. Japan fell 12.9% to $2.0 million, Germany edged down 2.0% to $4.8 million, and both Canada and Australia recorded modest contractions.

Packaging mix: bulk surge drives volume growth

Bulk wine in containers larger than 10 litres accounted for $58.3 million of August exports—27.0% of total value—and grew 55.6% year-over-year. Bottled wine in containers of two litres or less (including sparkling) totalled $157.1 million, up 27.0%.

The average price for bottled wine was $10.72 per litre, nearly three times the $3.68 per litre for bulk shipments. The pronounced gap reflects the inherent value difference between consumer-ready bottled product and bulk wine destined for offshore bottling or blending. The faster growth in bulk shipments explains why volume growth (51.6%) substantially outpaced value growth (33.9%) during the month.

Data note

Statistics New Zealand advises that figures for the most recent month are initially provisional and subject to revision as late declarations are processed and classifications finalised.