Scotch whisky enjoyed a record-breaking year for exports in 2017, with both value and volume increasingly both globally and to the Australian market.
The Scotch Whisky Association (SWA) has released the HMRC export data showing that the value of global exports grew by 8.9 per cent to £4.36bn, while volumes increased by 1.6 per cent to 1.23 billion bottles.
A spokesperson for the SWA told TheShout that the value and volume of Scotch exports to Australia also increased in 2017.
“In 2017, Scotch Whisky exports to Australia were valued at over £103m, an increase of 2.8 per cent from the previous year,” the spokesperson said.
“Volume also increased by 4.39 per cent compared to the year before, with a total of 30.25m, 70cl bottles shipped in 2017, showing that Australians clearly enjoy the unique heritage, taste and diversity of Scotland’s most well-known export.”
The spokesperson also told TheShout that the Association is hopeful that Australia and the UK could sign free-trade agreement, which would help with whisky’s long-term growth in this country.
“Post-Brexit, signing a free-trade deal with Australia will help secure long-term growth by eliminating the tariff and non-tariff barriers which continue to hold the industry back,” the spokesperson said.
The current value and volume figures for Australia mean the country is sitting just outside the top 10 markets for Scotch around the world.
The largest value market for Scotch remains the United States, which saw 7.7 per cent growth in 2017, taking its value £922m. Although the volume of exports to France fell by 5.9 per cent in 2017 to 178m bottles, it remains the biggest volume market.
Commenting on the overall figures, Karen Betts, CEO of the SWA, said: “These encouraging figures show how popular Scotch whisky is right around the world. Already a strong export, loved for its sophistication, diversity and provenance, it’s great to see Scotch continuing to grow in established and new markets. Scotch whisky is not just a core part of Scotland’s national identity and heritage, it is also a fundamental part of our export economy.
“Longer term, we are urging the UK government to secure as smooth trade conditions as possible with Europe alongside pursuing ambitious free trade deals with key markets around the world, tackling barriers to trade, and bolstering the legal protection of Scotch whisky.”
The top 10 export markets by value in 2017:
- USA – £922m +7.7% (£856m in 2016)
- France – £433m +2.1% (£424m in 2016)
- Singapore – £291m +29.4% (£225m in 2016)
- Germany – £184m +13.5% (£162m in 2016)
- Spain – £175m +5.2%(£166m in 2016)
- Taiwan – £160m -8.3% (£175m in 2016)
- UAE – £130m -1.2% (£131m in 2016)
- Latvia – £120m +105% (£59m in 2016)
- South Africa – £114m +20.7% (£95m in 2016)
- Mexico – £111 -0.4% (£111m in 2016)
The largest volume markets in 2017:
- France – 178m bottles -5.9% (190m bottles in 2016)
- USA – 127m bottles +7.4% (119m bottles in 2016)
- India – 89m bottles -4.8% (94m bottles in 2016)
- Spain – 61m bottles -4.6% (64m bottles in 2016)
- Germany – 56m bottles +5.8% (53m bottles in 2016)
- Mexico – 53m bottles -7.5% (58m bottles in 2016)
- South Africa – 52m bottles +17.0% (44m bottles in 2016)
- Singapore – 47m bottles +14.2% (41m bottles in 2016)
- Latvia – 37m bottles +74.9% (21m bottles in 2016)
- Brazil – 36m bottles -15.4% (43m bottles in 2016)
