(TheDrinksBusiness) - China is set to become the sixth largest wine producer in the world by 2016, according to the latest figures from Vinexpo. The research, in collaboration with The International Wine and Spirits Research, found that by 2016 China will have risen from the 8th to the 6th largest wine producer in the world. Vinexpo chief executive Robert Beynat welcomed the news: “I’m happy the Chinese are producing more wine. It’s like American history repeating itself. “The more they produce, the more young Chinese wine consumers they will bring in to the category through their homegrown wine. “The quality of Chinese wine is constantly improving and soon this will become a problem for the French, as they were the first into China but are facing increasing competition from both homegrown wines and wines from other countries keen to break into the Chinese market,” he added.