Increased duties on wines from unfriendly countries will be extended

Increased duties on wines from unfriendly countries, established until the end of this year, according to Kommersant’s information, will be extended. In August, when this measure began to take effect, the import of wine had already decreased by 30% year-on-year and month-on-month, and experts expect imported wines cheaper than 500 rubles to be washed off the shelves. per bottle. Winemakers are counting not only on prolongation, but also on the expansion of protective measures.

Increased import duties on wine from unfriendly countries introduced until the end of 2023 will be extended, a source close to the government told Kommersant. According to him, in fact, the decision has already been made. Kommersant’s source in a large alcohol company also speaks about the extension of duties. The Ministry of Economy did not provide a comment.

Import duties on wines from the EU, USA, Australia, etc. from August 1 have been increased from 12.5% ​​to 20%, but not less than $1.5 per liter. Russian winemakers expect that the measure will improve competition with cheap foreign wine. Importers pointed out that indexation threatens to increase prices and switch consumers to other types of alcohol.

According to data from market participants available to Kommersant, in August of this year, imports of all wines decreased by 30% year-on-year and by 32.5% compared to July, to 30.7 million liters, excluding the EAEU.

Supplies of still and sparkling wines from Italy in August decreased by 45% year-on-year, to 8.41 million liters, from Spain – by 38%, to 3.86 million liters, from France – by 25%, to 2.36 million l. In January-August, excluding the EAEU, 282.55 million liters of wine were imported, 28% more than a year earlier. In the structure of imports of still wines, 19.4% came from Georgia, 18.4% from Italy, 16.9% from Spain. Italy accounted for 71.5% of the supply of sparkling wines excluding champagne.

The head of the WineRetail information center, Alexander Stavtsev, says that the import of prepaid wine continues by inertia. And on the shelves, according to him, increased duties and the depreciation of the ruble lead to the washing out of imported wine worth up to 500 rubles. per bottle. The rise in prices is still restrained by stocks purchased at a low rate, as well as the stock of Russian wines, the expert adds.

Executive director of the Fort wine trading company Alexander Lipilin says that the company will reduce purchases of wines for which the price increases by more than 25–45%, since the consumer will not buy for 600 rubles. items that previously cost 350 rubles. per bottle. “We will sell off the stocks, and we will not purchase new wines that fall into this category,” he says.

The Luding Group said it is negotiating with suppliers to minimize the impact of increased duties on prices.

Ladoga President Veniamin Grabar says that in a short period, the increase in duties caused a double jump in demand for imported wines from unfriendly countries since July. In anticipation of the September price increase, customers stocked up on products, mainly in the wine category up to 400–500 rubles. per bottle, he says. As Mr. Grabar notes, due to the increase in duties, categories that have become unprofitable to transport are being removed from the portfolio.

President of the Abrau-Durso Group of Companies Pavel Titov says that, despite the indexation of duties, a huge amount of imported wine remains on the market. According to him, it is important not only to prolong the measures already taken, but also to introduce quotas on the import of foreign alcohol, subsidize the costs of opening nurseries, and also maintain the compensation formula for increased excise taxes. In 2024, excise taxes on wine may triple, to 108–141 rubles. for 1 l (see “Kommersant” dated September 30). And winemakers using Russian grapes can return part of the excise tax for investment. The Association of Winegrowers and Winemakers of Russia is looking forward to the further implementation of comprehensive measures to protect the Russian wine market, says its executive director Alexey Plotnikov. As Mr. Stavtsev notes, increasing duties is already an effective measure, and when it comes to tightening imports, it is important to take into account the risks of switching demand to other alcohol.

Chairman of the Presidium of the Association of Retail Trade Companies Igor Karavaev says that so far the demand for Russian wine has not changed significantly. To keep consumers in the category, a variety of assortments is needed, then importers will try to maintain the supply of wines, including from unfriendly countries, he says.

According to a Kommersant interlocutor close to the government, an increase in import duties on beer from a number of countries is also being discussed, but there is a risk of retaliatory complications in the supply of hops to the Russian Federation. Igor Khavsky, co-owner of the distributor SWAM Group and the Gletcher brewery, says that with a need of 9-10 thousand tons of hops per year, up to 200 tons are grown in the Russian Federation and a sharp increase in prices for raw materials can cause damage to the industry that is not comparable with the income from increased duties.

Anatoly Kostyrev, Khalil Aminov