Italian Wine Exports Fall 3.6% in 2025 as Global Demand Weakens

Italian wine exports continued to decline in November 2025, according to data from Istat analyzed by WineNews. The total value of exports for the first 11 months of the year reached 7.2 billion euros, down 3.6% compared to the same period in 2024. This drop follows a record year in 2024, when Italian wine exports hit 8.1 billion euros. The volume of wine exported also fell by 2%, totaling 1.95 billion liters.

The United States remains the most significant market for Italian wine outside Europe, but its performance has worsened. Exports to the U.S. dropped by 8% in value, reaching 1.62 billion euros, and by 5.7% in volume, with shipments totaling 312.2 million liters. In October, the decline was already evident at -5.6% in value and -3.2% in volume, but November saw a further negative turn. Industry analysts point to ongoing tariffs and fluctuations in the euro-dollar exchange rate as key factors affecting these results.

Germany continues to be Italy’s top European partner by value and leads overall by volume. However, growth slowed in November: export value increased by just 0.8% to reach 1 billion euros, while volumes fell by 3.1% to 442.6 million liters.

The United Kingdom remains the third-largest market for Italian wine but is also reducing its imports. Exports to the UK dropped by 4.2% in value to 770.1 million euros and by 2.4% in volume to 240.7 million liters.

Canada, which had shown strong demand earlier in the year partly due to reduced imports of American wines, is now importing less Italian wine as well. By November, exports to Canada stood at 384.6 million euros, down 6.9% from the previous year.

Switzerland followed with imports worth 356.6 million euros, a decrease of 5.4%. France remained stable and even showed growth, importing Italian wine worth 291.2 million euros, up 4.2%. This increase is partly attributed to French consumers’ continued interest in Prosecco.

The Netherlands performed better than many other markets with imports rising by 5.8% to reach 239.2 million euros, although this was a slower pace than seen in October. Belgium imported Italian wine worth 203.6 million euros, down by 5.1%.

In Scandinavia, Sweden stood out with an increase of 4.5%, reaching imports valued at 175.2 million euros.

Asian markets continued to present challenges for Italian wine exporters. Japan imported wine worth 161.7 million euros, a decrease of 4.8%, though this was an improvement over October’s figures.

Russia’s imports of Italian wine dropped sharply compared with the first eleven months of last year, falling by 18.3% to reach a total of 189.8 million euros despite some recovery in November compared with October.

Austria also saw a significant decline at -9%, with imports totaling 136.8 million euros.

Australia and South Korea both held close to their previous year’s levels at -1.6% (65.2 million euros) and -1.5% (44.8 million euros), respectively.

Brazil was one of the few bright spots among non-European markets, with imports rising by 1.8% to reach 39 million euros.

China experienced a steep drop in demand for Italian wine, with imports collapsing by 26% to just over 60 million euros.

India remains a small but growing market for Italian wine exports, totaling only 2.4 million euros for the first eleven months of the year but showing growth of 3.7%. The industry is watching closely for potential changes following an agreement between India and the European Union that could overhaul tariff policies.

Despite these declines, Italian wine exports have not collapsed entirely but are facing ongoing uncertainty and challenges across most major markets as consumer behavior shifts and economic conditions remain volatile worldwide.

November’s data provided little optimism for a turnaround before year-end, especially given that U.S.-bound shipments recorded their worst monthly value of all of 2025 except August.

As the sector looks ahead to early 2026, producers are dealing with high inventory levels and preparing for another challenging year shaped by global economic pressures and changing demand patterns across key export destinations.