The study commissioned by the industry association put a value of £9.23bn on exports in 2008. When alcoholic beverages were included, the figure was £13.6bn – towards which Scotch whisky was a big contributor.
The strong performances are said to cover all product categories and could be explained by growing taste for typically British goods from Central Europe.
Exports to Hungary were up 74.3 per cent to £40.2m; exports to Poland were up 53.6 per cent to £116.4m; exports to Latvia were up 51 per cent to £8.6m; exports to Slovakia were up 45.2 per cent to £11.5m; and exports to Lithuania were up 32.7 per cent to £9.7m.