(MENAFN- AFP) Global wine consumption fell marginally in 2013 and the United States outstripped France as the top consumer, the International Organisation of Wine and Vine (OIV) said Tuesday.
Consumption dipped 1 percent last year to 238.7 hectolitres of wine in the global market worth 73 billion euros ($100 billion).
The United States was the top consumer for the first time at 29 million hectolitres, with domestic production accounting for four-fifths, said Jean-Marie Aurand, the head of the intergovernmental organisation that compiles global statistics for the industry.
France was in second place at 28 million hectolitres, followed by Germany, Italy and China.
Wine consumption also fell in other European countries such as Italy, Spain and Britain, said the OIV.
Aurand said the overall decline in consumption may have been due to price effects as production was weak in 2012.
At 281 million hectolitres in 2013, production returned to the level of 2006, according to the OIV.
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