Behind the data: the changing global map of Scotch whisky

The results from the first half of 2026 marked a continuation of this contrast, but a rebound in sales. According to data provided by whisky investment service Decant Index, global Scotch whisky exports rose 6 per cent by volume and 3 per cent by value year-on-year. 

Although six months is insufficient to establish a long-term trend, it is positive news for the global Scotch whisky industry.

“The first-half 2026 figures challenge the idea that Scotch whisky is experiencing structural decline,” said John Kennedy, Managing Director at Decant Index. 

“More whisky was exported than during the comparable period last year, total value increased, single malt volumes recovered, and several strategically important markets continued to expand.”

Micro trends, macro scale

Kennedy’s analysis of the more extensive 2025 Scotch Whisky Association data was focused largely on Europe, where Scotch whisky’s second largest export market France slumped 3.6 per cent by value and 14 per cent by volume. 

However, the 2025 calendar year saw Asia Pacific lose its title as Scotch’s most valuable regional market to Europe after declining 8.3 per cent. 

Australia was largely exempt from this shift, with the largest value falls among Asia Pacific markets recorded in China, Singapore and Thailand.  

India, also within APAC, was the strongest-performing major Scotch export market in 2025, up 15 per cent by both volume and value and receiving the equivalent of 220 million bottles. 

According to John Kennedy, the growth of India highlights how quickly established positions in the global Scotch market can change. 

“India’s performance was influenced heavily by bulk shipments, but its continued expansion reinforces the long-term importance of the market to Scotch whisky,” he said.

In a similar fashion, growth in some established markets is helping offset declines elsewhere in Europe. 

While France softened, Germany became the eighth-largest Scotch market globally by value and fourth-largest by volume, up 4.6 and 5.8 per cent respectively. 

In the first half of 2026, the Netherlands, which is a key European distribution hub similar to Singapore in APAC, was among the European markets to record growth in import volumes.

Explaining the long-term insights, Kennedy said: “I wouldn’t read one year of falling exports to France as evidence of a lasting decline in demand. Germany’s growth is real. The Netherlands has always mattered more than the consumption figures suggest, because so much of what lands there doesn’t stay there.”

43 bottles every second

Total Scotch whisky exports were worth AUD $10 billion in 2025, with 43 bottles shipped every second to around 163 global markets. This was down a bottle a second versus the year prior.

By value, single malt accounted for 29.7 per cent of exports, blended Scotch for 59.8 per cent, and other categories, including bulk exports, for 10.5 per cent. By volume, single malt accounted for 8.9 per cent.

Australia was last among the world's top 10 Scotch whisky markets by value in 2021.

Mark Kent, Chief Executive of the Scotch Whisky Association, concluded:

"It's said that form is temporary, but class is permanent. Scotch Whisky is an iconic product which appeals around the world, and the industry's great resilience means that our long-term potential for continued growth is clear. It is within both the UK and Scottish Governments' power to facilitate the supportive environment producers need, boosting and sustaining growth for Scotch Whisky and the wider economy, and we stand ready to work in partnership to achieve that aim."

Read more from the Scotch Whisky Association's 2025 export report