Global Scotch sales: Slight decline with £5.4bn exported in 2024
Figures from the Scotch Whisky Association (SWA) reveals that the total global export value for Scotch whisky stood at £5.4bn for 2024. This represents a slight decline of 3.7% in exports by value compared to 2023.
These sales represent an equivalent of 1.4bn 70cl bottles exported globally last year. Although the export by value figures have fallen, export by volume has actually increased by 3.9%, representing a change in global preferences with consumers seeking out more affordable whiskies.
The US remains the largest export market by value, with £971m worth of the spirit exported across the Atlantic in 2024. India has leapfrogged France as the world’s top export market by volume, with 192 million bottles exported.
Despite the slight drop in sales for 2024 it is worth noting that Scotch whisky exports have grown by 10% in value since pre-Covid 2019 levels, while the volume has seen a 7% increase.
In face of recent February duty rises and the impact of extended producer responsibility (EPR), the Scotch whisky trade wants a change of course from the UK government to allow this upward trajectory to continue. This is the perspective of SWA chief executive, Mark Kent.
He said: “Despite the resilience of the Scotch Whisky industry, 2024 has been a challenging year.
“At home, distillers are being stretched to breaking point, as consumers bear the brunt of a 14% increase on the tax on every bottle of Scotch Whisky in the last 18 months alone. The cumulative effect of inflationary impacts on input costs such as cereals, energy and shipping, and the increased tax and regulatory costs, including the substantial cost of EPR coming later this year, are being fed through to consumers when they are tightening their belts.”
Additionally, the cloud of potential global trade wars is one the trade hopes the governments can help navigate.
Kent added: “Overseas, the tectonic plates of trade are shifting, and exports to traditionally strong markets in the EU and North America have become much more challenging. We continue to support UK government to promote strong and open trade relations with key export markets around the world, and particularly to advance negotiations on FTA with India, and engage with the US administration.”
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