The last few years have been difficult for the French Wine industry and the Iraq war certainly hasn't helped. Decanter Magazine points out that an unofficial boycott of French wines in the US has cost the country an estimated US$112m (£64m). The National Bureau of Economic Research points out that, at its peak, the boycott resulted in a 26% slump on weekly sales of wine with 13% lower sales in the six months following the US invasion of Iraq.