South Africa's wine exports reach record high
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E-mail Xinhua, January 15, 2014
South Africa's wine exports reached a record high in 2013, selling 525.7 million litres in volumes, according to data released on Tuesday.
This was a 26 percent increase on the previous high achieved in 2012, said Fin24, a Cape Town-based news outlet.
Britain remained South Africa's biggest market, accounting for over one-fifth of total volumes exported last year, a rise of 21 percent to 111.2 million litres, Fin24 said, quoting figures from the Wines of South Africa (WOSA).
Volumes to Germany, South Africa's second largest market, increased by 24 percent to 96.5 million litres.
Exports to the United States, a market of fast-growing importance to South Africa, increased by 37 percent, buoyed by improved distribution and ongoing positive media exposure.
Meanwhile, exports to Russia were up 18 percent to 37.3 million litres.
Strong gains had also been achieved in Denmark, where packaged sales were up by 21 percent.
South Africa was also making good inroads in many of Africa's major economies as well as in Japan, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates.
South African sales to wine producing countries such as France, Italy and Spain also increased dramatically.
Siobhan Thompson, CEO of WOSA, attributed the dramatic rise in exports to the country's bumper harvest in 2013 that had allowed South Africa to fill the gap created by the poor European harvest and to the penetration of new markets. Endi
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