European Union exports of wine, beer, and spirits closed the first half of 2026 with a mixed picture: wine and wine-based products fell 4%, the category grouping beer, cider, and other beverages dropped 2%, while spirits and liqueurs jumped 10%.
The figures come from the European Commission's agri-food trade monitoring report, published on August 28 with Eurostat COMEXT data through June.
A stable total masking divergent trends
Combined, the three categories generated €17.511 billion in exports between January and June — almost identical to the €17.527 billion recorded in the same period of 2015, a gap of just €16 million, or less than 0.1%. But that apparent stability conceals a significant internal shift: the growth in spirits nearly offset the entire loss recorded by wine, beer, and cider combined.
Wine still leads, but the gap is narrowing
Wine remained the top export category by value. The EU sold €7.844 billion worth of wine and wine-based products to non-EU countries in the first half of the year, down from €8.173 billion in the same period of 2025 — a drop of €330 million. Wine still accounted for roughly 45% of the three categories' combined exports. The Commission notes this decline continues a trend already visible in the annual data, with wine exports falling from €17.455 billion in 2024 to €16.5 billion in 2025.
Despite the drop, the EU's wine trade balance stayed strongly positive. Imports totaled €671 million between January and June, leaving a surplus of €7.173 billion — down from €7.454 billion a year earlier, a reduction of €281 million.
Beer, cider, and other beverages: a smaller but real decline
Exports in this combined category reached €5.242 billion, versus €5.334 billion a year earlier, a fall of €92 million, or 2%. Annually, the category had already declined from €10.835 billion in 2024 to €10.511 billion in 2025. Because the Commission does not break this bucket down internally, it's not possible to isolate how much of the €5.242 billion is beer specifically versus cider or other drinks. Imports came to €1.2 billion, for a surplus of €4.042 billion, down €47 million from the prior year.
Spirits reverse course
Spirits and liqueurs told a different story, rising from €4.02 billion in H1 2025 to €4.425 billion in H1 2026 — a €405 million, or 10%, increase. That marks a turnaround after a decline from €8.769 billion in 2024 to €8.360 billion in 2025. Brussels credits much of the rebound to stronger sales to Ukraine, Kazakhstan, and Russia: in Ukraine, spirits were the category contributing most to overall export growth; in Kazakhstan, higher prices drove the gain; in Russia, it was higher shipped volumes. The Commission did not break down exactly how the €405 million increase split across these three markets.
On the import side, the EU brought in €2.168 billion of distilled spirits and liqueurs, up 6% from €2.052 billion a year earlier — but since exports grew faster, the trade surplus widened from €1.968 billion to €2.257 billion, a gain of €289 million. Spirits made up around a quarter of combined exports across the three categories but more than half of combined imports.
The bottom line
Wine and beer/cider together lost €422 million in exports compared to H1 2025; spirits alone added back €405 million, nearly canceling out the loss. On the import side, total purchases across the three sectors reached €4.039 billion, leaving a combined trade surplus of €13.472 billion — down just €39 million from €13.511 billion a year earlier. Wine contributed about 53% of that overall surplus, beer/cider around 30%, and spirits the remaining share. The United States was among the markets where EU beverage exports declined in H1, a drop the Commission attributes mainly to lower prices, without breaking the figure down by product category.
Source: Vinetur
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