ine and spirits fair opened in Hong Kong today, drawing the world's top producers from France to Chile despite China reporting the first decline in wine consumption for a decade. According to a survey by Vinexpo Asia Pacific, mainland China's wine consumption fell by 2.5 per cent last year, after ten years of uninterrupted growth at a rate of 25 per cent per year.
The drop comes as Beijing reins in luxury spending and extravagant banquets, against the backdrop of a slower economy, and an anti-graft campaign backed by President Xi Jinping to root out official corruption.
However, show organisers, who expanded the trade fair by 50 percent in floor space from its last edition in 2012, are adamant there are still strong opportunities for the wine and spirits markets in the region, because of increased demand from a growing middle class.
Winemakers and industry executives also say that the economic slowdown will not prevent people from drinking, but the focus may now shift to mid-range wine and spirits.
"This is the largest Vinexpo Asia Pacific ever. The markets of South East Asia and China are still booming," Vinexpo chief executive officer Guillaume Deglise said.
Xavier de Eizaguirre, chairman of Vinexpo, added: "Little did we know two decades [ago] Asia led by China and Japan would reach 63 percent of world's spirits consumption."
In 2013, China overtook France as the world's largest consumer of red wine, guzzling more than 155 million 9-litre cases or 1.865 billion bottles that year, according to Vinexpo.
But the official austerity drive in China has meant that people are increasingly turning to cheaper wines.
"Cheaper wines are selling better because of the anti-corruption campaign. the government did not say you shouldn't drink," said Angel Lee, director of Hong Kong-based wine trading company MBL.
