Hong Kong becomes gateway for Hawke's Bay wine into China

Hawke's Bay wineries wanting to break into Asian markets, and in particular China, would be well advised to consider Hong Kong as the gateway, a delegation from Invest HK, the official economic and trade organisation for that region, told members of Hawke's Bay Winegrowers Inc. last week.

Hong Kong has no duties on wine imports and has had year-on-year growth in wines from around the world of 80 percent, 45 percent and 74 percent in the last three financial years. In response, over 800 wine-related companies have set up their business in Hong Kong, and its wine auction sales in 2010 amounted to US$164 million, making it the world's largest wine auction centre.

"As Hawke's Bay has the largest number of wineries in New Zealand actively exporting to China, the information presented was hugely valuable to their businesses," says Lyn Bevin, Hawke's Bay Winegrowers' Executive Officer.

The wineries that attended found the meeting very worthwhile and were going to look further into the opportunities and assistance provided by Invest HK, she says.