* Up to $1 billion estimated damage in South America's top fruit exporter

* Early wine grape varieties such as Chardonnay also affected

Oct 3 (Reuters) - Chile has declared a state of emergency after a late frost caused an estimated $1 billion worth of damage to fruit crops, potentially hitting wine production and impacting trade from one of South America's top fruit exporters.

The affected central region is the main fruit and wine producing area in Chile, the world's No.7 wine producer. It includes vineyards owned by prominent local wine labels Concha y Toro and Valle San Pedro.

Among the wine varieties, the early grapes such as Chardonnay and Pinot Noir have been hardest hit. Chile is best known for its Carmenere grape variety, as well as Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Wine-making is an important part of the country's manufacturing sector.

"These frosts are the worst that agriculture has faced in 84 years, impacting the area from Coquimbo to Bio Bio," the national agricultural society said.

Fruit and wine are some of Chile's largest industries after copper. Fruit exports were worth $4.3 billion in 2012 and wine exports were valued at $1.8 billion, according to government figures. Agriculture Minister Luis Mayol said 30 percent of the fruit that Chile exports has been affected and pledged aid for farmers.

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