UK: Whisky distillery winding down production

Scotland will soon see another whisky distillery close, when the Macadam distillery in Angus, begins to wind down its production this week.In the past 20 years the industry has seen more than 12,000 job losses and some 18 months ago the whisky business hit upon hard times with a slump in three export markets.Deemed as "uncool" in the UK and US, whisky is growing in popularity in the trendy bars and clubs in southern European countries, and overall malts are doing better than blends and luxury brands.But, with exports amounting to more than £2 billion annually, whisky is still one of the most important industries in Scotland and Alan Gray of Charterhouse Securities believes exports and production should begin to rise, by 1.5% next year.