AUSTRALIAN Vintage Ltd., the maker of McGuigan Wines, said yesterday it had signed a distribution deal with a Chinese company aimed at boosting its sales in a rapidly growing market.

    Australian Vintage did not disclose the value of the deal it signed with China’s COFCO Wine & Spirits Co. Ltd.

    “There is currently an opportunity for Australian wine in China, and it’s one of the most exciting emerging markets for the global wine industry,” AVL CEO Neil McGuigan said in a statement.

    A global wine glut coupled with weak demand from major economies has driven wine makers to target China and other emerging markets to boost sales.

    AVL, which has a market capitalization of US$84.2 million, posted a 22 percent increase in net profit for the first half-ended December and expected the year of 2014 to be “significantly better” than last year.

    It is expected to more than double its net profit to A$9.1 million (US$8.48 million) for the year-ended June, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

    China consumed about 17 million hectoliters of wine last year, Paris-based International Vine and Wine organization OIV estimated, slightly lower than the previous year after a decade of rapid growth. (SD-Agencies)