Vietnam became the world's second-largest furniture exporter in 2025, having ranked below Indonesia in 2000, the Indonesian Ministry of Industry said. Jakarta is pushing machinery modernisation, backed by a reimbursement of up to 35 percent of equipment investment, to convert abundant timber into competitive exports.
Mexico imported 17.107 million tonnes of corn between January and August 2026, up 8.1% year-on-year, with yellow corn accounting for 16.406 million tonnes. White corn imports fell 24.3% to 573,400 tonnes. Farm groups in Sinaloa are asking the federal government for import quotas before autumn-winter planting decisions are made.
More than 5,000 tonnes of Belgian apples risk going unsold this season because hailstones left marks on the skin of the fruit. The apples are unaffected in taste and storage quality but fall short of the cosmetic requirements supermarkets apply to fresh produce. The country's fruit growers' organisation has criticised the standards.
Extra-virgin olive oil is selling below 4.50 euros a litre in several of Spain's largest supermarket chains, with Carrefour at 4.44 euros and Mercadona, Consum and Lupa at 4.45, according to lasprovincias.es. Prices have been falling for several weeks, and bulk three- and five-litre formats work out lower still, at around 4.26 to 4.27 euros a litre.
French wine exports fell 2.2% in value to 5.4 billion euros and 1.5% in volume to 618.9 million litres in the first half of 2026, according to customs data analysed by OIVE. The United States remained the largest market by value at 1 billion euros despite a 9.8% drop, while taking 4.3% more litres. Sparkling wine was the only category to grow.
From 1 November 2026, Russia will assess the business reputation of company heads and chief accountants at firms producing and selling ethyl alcohol and alcoholic products, according to alcoexpert.ru. The measure extends regulatory scrutiny from licensed entities to the individuals running them. It lands as officials report a fall in alcohol consumption of roughly 15% over five to six years.
Vietnam exported about 13,000 tonnes of tea worth nearly $27 million in August 2026, taking eight-month volume to roughly 77,000 tonnes and $143.5 million. Shipments to Pakistan, the traditional black tea outlet, fell almost 60% in both volume and value, while Saudi Arabia, Russia and the United States expanded. Average export prices rose nearly 5% to about $1,780 per tonne.
Italy's Senate has given final approval to the Pichetto delegated law on sustainable nuclear energy, nearly 40 years after the 1987 referendum closed the country's atomic plants. The law empowers the government to issue decrees on construction, waste, safety, oversight bodies and nuclear hydrogen. Minister Gilberto Pichetto Fratin says the first plants could start up around 2033-2034, based on small modular reactors.
Washington confirmed the redistribution of 56,000 tonnes of raw sugar import quota from Brazil to other suppliers, leaving Brazilian mills with 100,000 tonnes at the reduced tariff in the coming fiscal year. The Dominican Republic and the Philippines took the largest reallocated shares, while Brazilian sugar outside the quota faces a duty of about US$340 per tonne plus cumulative surcharges of 37.5%.
Spain closed the 2025-2026 wine campaign with exports of wine and wine products worth €3,274.3 million, down 7.2% in value and 13% in volume, according to DelReyAWM. Exported volume fell to its lowest level since the series began in 2016, while the average price reached a record €1.38 per litre. Shipments to the United States dropped 16.3% in volume and 16.9% in value.
France's eight crémant regions sold about 122.9 million bottles in 2025, 58% more than in 2016, against a shrinking overall wine market. In Burgundy, crémant sales rose 6.5% over 12 months while red wine fell 4.9%. The FNPEC says producers in Italy, Germany, Austria and Eastern Europe are using the crémant name without meeting the EU production rules.
Registrations of vehicles above 3.5 tonnes in Italy were flat in July 2026 at 2,863 units and fell 2.5% in August to 1,263, according to UNRAE estimates based on Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport data reported by ANSA. The eight-month total remains 3.0% higher at 19,200 units, while UNRAE presses for the multi-year road haulage fund to become operational.
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