French wine exporters worried about new US tariff threats

The Federation of French Wine and Spirit Exporters (FEVS) said yesterday that President Donald Trump's threat that the United States will have no choice but to impose 100% tariffs on French wine if Paris does not eliminate the digital tax imposed on US technology giants is bad news for the export-dependent industry, caught in a dispute that cannot be controlled, Reuters reports, according to Agerpres.

In an interview with the New York Post, Trump said he had sent a direct warning to President Emmanuel Macron, demanding the elimination of the 3% tax imposed on US technology giants. Otherwise, the US president indicated that France would face tariffs on the US market.

Trump has urged his French counterpart not to impose tariffs on US companies and, if he does, has said he will have no choice but to impose 100% tariffs on wine and champagne from France.

"This threat is bad news for our industry, which is heavily dependent on exports,” FEVS said in response to a Reuters request.

The group called for "responsible behavior” and balanced and constructive trade ties between France and the United States, "in the interest of both economies.”

Amid rising trade tensions between the US and the EU, Trump last year threatened to impose 200% tariffs on wine and other alcoholic beverages from France and the bloc.

Alcohol is among the EU's main exports to the US, worth around nine billion euros ($10.46 billion) in 2024, according to Eurostat data, and some products, such as Remy Martin cognac and champagne, are only made in certain European regions.

• OIV: Tariffs hit wine trade in 2025

US tariffs contributed to a further decline in global wine trade last year, while consumption remained at its lowest level in more than 60 years, as economic pressures and changing tastes continued to weigh on drinkers, data published in May by the International Organisation of Vine and Wine (OIV) showed, according to Reuters.

The United States is the world's largest wine market.

The area under vines in the European Union fell by 1.6% in 2025, reaching a total of 3.2 million hectares, representing 45% of the global total.

At the country level, Spain had the largest area under vines in the world last year - 919,000 hectares - a decrease of 1.3% compared to 2024. Similarly, France, which has the second largest area under vines in the EU, recorded a decline for the third consecutive year. In 2025, adjustments accelerated, with the area under vines falling by 4.4% compared to 2024, to 740,000 hectares. Italy also reported a decline of 0.3% last year, so that the area under vines stood at 726,000 hectares.

Other major EU wine producers reported largely stable areas, with minor adjustments. This is the case of Romania (187,000 hectares), Portugal (171,000 hectares), Germany (102,000 hectares), Greece (93,000 hectares), Bulgaria (58,000 hectares) and Hungary (58,000 hectares).

Romania's wine production also stood at 3.3 million hectoliters (mhl) last year, an increase of 3.7% compared to 2024. Romania's wine production remains 16.7% below the average of the last five years. The harvest was affected by variable weather conditions, including spring frosts and storms, as well as uneven water availability across regions. While some areas benefited from rains during the growing season, others, especially in the west, remained affected by persistent drought and extreme weather events.

Romania, with 3.5 million hectoliters (mhl), recorded an 11% increase in wine consumption last year compared to 2024, and remains 14.3% below the average of the last five years.

• Global wine exports - at the lowest level since 2009

Global wine exports fell by 4.7% last year, by volume, to 94.8 million hectoliters, the lowest level since 2009, and in terms of value, they recorded a decline of 6.7%, to 33.8 billion euros, OIV data shows.

Global wine consumption fell by 2.7% in 2025 to 208 million hectoliters, the lowest level since 1957.

Global wine production in 2025 reached 227 million hectoliters, below the OIV's November forecast of 232 million hectoliters, and only 0.6% above the 2024 level, which was the lowest since 1961.