A complicated first quarter closes for Italian wine sales abroad, with flat sales (+0.1%) and a trend performance in value at +3.8% (€1.8 billion). This is the finding of the Uiv-Ismea-Vinitaly Observatory, which processed the latest Istat data on foreign trade. Commercialized volumes, the Observatory points out, are kept afloat by the exploit of bulk wine sales (+13.4 percent) - which, however, record a sharp drop in price lists (-9.2 percent) - and common ones, at +12.8 percent. Suffering, again in sales, are the flagship products of Made in Italy, starting with bottled PDO still wines, which are down -5.3% (+2.5% value) with reds at -6.6%. IGP wines are also down (-2.5%), where the growth of whites (+8.3%) was not enough to calm the loss of reds (-7.5%). Among types, the difficult start for sparkling wines is confirmed (-3.2% sales and +7.3% value), due to the contraction of exported sales of Prosecco (-5.5%), while the good season of Asti Spumante (+9.1%) and common sparklings (+4.4%) continues.