UK wine businesses holding more stock

UK wine businesses are holding more stock after Brexit, Covid and Ukraine war puts pressure on supply chains.

With stock levels in the UK rising by 115% on pre pandemic and Brexit levels, this is having a negative impact on profits.

The stock levels are based on all beverages including soft drinks (44%) and alcoholic drinks (56%) including wine. But shows how there is a lack of confidence in supply chains after two years of chaos caused by radical increase in red tape associated with Brexit, shifts in demand associated with Covid and the Ukraine war.

On a positive note, the cost of shipping a container around the world has dropped. The rate for shipping a 40ft container to Europe from China has dropped by two-thirds on both a year-to-date and 12-month basis, to $4,861. This is, however, still around three-and-a-half times higher than pre-pandemic levels.