The energy dependence of exclusive vector--meson (V) production is studied using the ZEUS data. The SU(4) universality of V cross sections in the Q²+M_V² scale is tested. The energy dependence of the ratio of the cross sections for V production to the total \gamma ^*p cross section is compared with expectations based on pQCD and Regge approaches.

PACS numbers: 13.60.Le, 12.38.Bx