Global wine demand drops to 27-year low as high prices hit

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Global wine consumption fell to its lowest level since 1996 last year as inflation sent prices to record highs, deterring consumers already facing lower spending power, the International Organisation for Vine and Wine (OIV) said on Thursday. The Paris-based OIV estimated world wine consumption in 2023 at 221 million hectolitres (mhl), down 2.6 per cent from 2022, and 7.5 per cent below 2018. A hectolitre is the equivalent of 133 standard wine bottles. Geopolitical tensions, particularly the war in Ukraine, and subsequent energy crises, along with disruptions in the global supply chain, resulted in higher production and distribution costs, which,...