Total shipments climbed 40% in the six months through June, the biggest first-half advance in five years, Su Birch, chief executive officer for Wines of South Africa, said by phone from Pretoria today. “The weaker rand was the major driver behind the bulk-wine exports,” she said. “There was also a global imbalance because the Europeans have been short on wine due to a bad crop, while we had a good crop.” The rand has declined 15% against the dollar and 14 percent versus the euro this year, the worst performer against both of 16 major currencies tracked by Bloomberg. South Africa is the world’s eighth-largest producer of wine, accounting for about 4% of global volumes and Europe is its biggest export destination, according to the website of the industry body, known as WOSA. To read more, click here