Spain now third largest wine exporter to China

Spain is now the third biggest wine exporter to China according to recent figures, prompting greater Chinese-Spanish co-operation on the protection of trademarks.

For the first half of this year, Spanish wine imports in China were up 40.3% by volume to around 1.59 million litres and 43.8% by value to more than US$48.7 million (£30.5 million).

As a result, Spain confirmed its position as the third largest exporter of bottled wines to China, following France and Australia, according to the latest figures published by the Chinese Duties and Excise authorities.

Meanwhile, an agreement aimed at increasing cooperation in wine trade between China and Spain was signed by the Spanish Ministry of Agriculture and the Chinese General Administration of Quality Supervision last month, according to ChinaIRN.com.

One of the main purposes of the agreement was to further promote Spanish wine exports to China.

It also included proposals for developing digital transmission systems in order to verify the origin of wine, to help stop potential counterfeiting of popular labels. It emphasised in particular the improvement and use of current wine tracing systems, to better protect Spanish wine trademarks and regional names.

In China, Spanish wine is known for its bulk wine and lower-end brands with an average price of in €19 per bottle. However, in recent years, more high-end Spanish wine is getting widespread attention in China.

Currently, Beijing and Hong Kong are the major markets, particularly in Hong Kong where there is a huge market demand for Spanish wines.

In addition, the sparkling wine Cava has shown compelling growth in China, especially in nightclubs and trendy bars.