Asia’s H1 wine imports: seven of nine grew — Japan still first
Vino Joy News ranked nine Asian markets for January–June 2026. Seven grew in volume or value. Japan remains the region’s biggest import market by value, even as litres slipped.
Asia is not one wine market. It is nine different clocks.
Vino Joy News read H1 2026 import data across nine East and Southeast Asian markets. Only two fell in both volume and value. The other seven grew on at least one measure. Japan, South Korea, mainland China and Hong Kong all gained in value. That matters while global wine is still in a slump.
Japan stayed first. It imported 110,544,069 litres, down 0.72%, worth JPY 121.67 billion — about US$757 million, up 5.80%. Volume was almost flat; value rose. That is a higher average price, not a bigger flood of cheap litres. Japan also imported more wine than mainland China and kept the region’s top spot by value.
China was second: 101,350,100 litres, down 10.98%, but value edged up 0.83% to US$716.06 million. Fewer litres, slightly more money — a quality-and-price mix, not a boom.
India shows the other end of the scale. Imports were 2,508,408 litres, down 3%, yet value jumped 15.91% to US$13.67 million. Still tiny per person; still a long bet, not a present-tense giant.
Mini-concept: rank markets by value, not by a headline about “Asia.” Japan can slip in litres and still lead the table.
A canned mixer does not keep an import league. These figures are bottles crossing docks in Tokyo first.
Remember: Japan still Asia’s biggest import market by value.
Source: Vino Joy News