Decline in Swedish wine imports marks first drop below 100 million liters since 2010

France remains the top supplier, Italy and Spain face pricing shifts

2025-01-14

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Sweden imported 94.6 million liters of wine in the first half of 2024, marking a 6.4% decline compared to the same period in 2023, according to data from the Swedish customs authority. This is the first time since 2010 that the country's wine imports for the first half of the year fell below 100 million liters. Despite the decrease in volume, the overall value of wine imports dropped by only 2.3%, totaling 4.64 billion Swedish kronor (SEK), making it the second-highest figure recorded for a first half, following the record 4.74 billion SEK set in 2023. The average price per liter rose by 4.5% to 49.02 SEK. In euro terms, based on current exchange rates, Sweden imported wine worth approximately €404.3 million, with an average price of €4.27 per liter.

Swedish wine imports showed a mixed performance compared to 2023. While the decline in volume moderated, the value trend worsened. In 2023, Sweden recorded a 7.3% drop in volume but a 5.3% increase in value in kronor. In 2024, Sweden reduced wine imports every month during the first half of the year, with the value rising in January, February, and May but falling in March, April, and June. The Swedish krona, which depreciated against the euro in 2022 and 2023, stabilized somewhat in 2024, though it has not returned to pre-2022 levels.

Sparkling wine was the only category to grow in both volume and value during the first half of 2024, while imports of other types of wine declined in both aspects. Packaged wine remained the leading category, with 45.1 million liters imported (-1.6%), valued at 2.68 billion SEK (-2%), with an average price of 59.42 SEK per liter, down 0.5% year-on-year. Bag-in-box (BiB) wine, a popular format in Scandinavia, was the second most imported category, with 22.6 million liters (-14.7%). Sparkling wine rose to third place, surpassing bulk wine, with imports of 13.9 million liters (+5.3%), compared to 13 million liters of bulk wine (-16.6%). In terms of value, sparkling wine ranked second with 1.00 billion SEK (+1.7%), followed by BiB at 676 million SEK (-5%) and bulk wine at 280 million SEK (-10.2%). Sparkling wine commanded a significantly higher price, averaging 72.01 SEK per liter (-3.5%), compared to BiB at 29.94 SEK per liter (+11.4%) and bulk wine at 21.50 SEK per liter (+7.6%).

Sweden imported wine from 53 international suppliers during the first half of 2024. Among the top 10 suppliers, Spain was the only country to see a drop in average price. France remained the largest supplier in volume terms, with 20.8 million liters imported (-0.4%), followed by Italy with 20.1 million liters (-9.9%). In terms of value, France's lead was more pronounced, with imports valued at 1.55 billion SEK (+0.5%), well ahead of Italy's 1.01 billion SEK (-4.1%). French wine was also the most expensive among the main suppliers, averaging 74.32 SEK per liter (+0.9%), followed by Austria at 72.26 SEK per liter. Italian wine prices rose by 6.4%, reaching 50.31 SEK per liter, making it the fourth most expensive among Sweden's key suppliers.

Spain, the third-largest supplier, increased its export volume to Sweden by 1.7%, reaching 13.5 million liters. However, the value of Spanish wine imports dropped by 0.8% to 562 million SEK, as the average price fell by 2.5% to 41.66 SEK per liter. South Africa ranked fourth in volume, with a 6% decline to 7.3 million liters, followed by Germany, which saw a 9.8% increase to 6.2 million liters. Germany surpassed Denmark in this position, as Danish exports to Sweden dropped sharply by 29.5% to 6.2 million liters. Denmark, however, remained the fourth-largest supplier in value terms, with exports worth 274 million SEK (-21%), followed by Germany with 255 million SEK (+11.4%) and the United States with 182 million SEK (-4.4%). South Africa was the seventh-largest supplier in value terms, recording a 2.4% increase despite offering wine at a much lower price than the average. The first half of 2024 was challenging for U.S. and Portuguese exporters, in addition to Danish producers, who faced significant losses.

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