The Liv-ex March Market Report has been published exclusively for members on our Silver tier package or higher. The following is an extract.
The broadening market
The fine wine market has shown little sign of repose in the first two months of the year. Indeed, February set a new milestone as the most active February trading period yet recorded on Liv-ex.
This time a year ago as the Covid-19 pandemic began to throw global financial markets into turmoil, the benchmark Liv-ex Fine Wine 100 and 1000 indices were briefly knocked off course until a market rally in May/June.
In a sign of how the market has bounced back since then, trade by value this February was almost double that of February 2020. The number of LWIN7s (wine labels) and LWIN11s (wine labels + vintage) traded was also substantially higher: 1,149 and 2,035 respectively this year versus 786 and 1,357 last year.
All three benchmark indices (LX50, LX100, LX1000) are up on a year-on-year basis with a growing string of positive months under their belts.
Throughout the month we have highlighted the ever-increasing diversity of trade on the market. Demand for non-Bordeaux and Burgundy wines in the shape of LIVE bids in this early part of 2021 is already double that of this time last year, as detailed further in our Chart of the Month (below).
That said, Burgundy’s momentum carried over from January. The Burgundy 150 was once again the best-performing Liv-ex Fine Wine 1000 sub-index with a gain of 1.5%.
Red Burgundies from Domaine de la Romanee-Conti and Armand Rousseau were the top-performers in the Liv-ex 1000, while Domaine Leflaive’s 2016 Chevalier Montrachet and 2015 Puligny Montrachet ‘Clavoillon’ led the Liv-ex 100, alongside some Super Tuscan back vintages.
The Burgundy 150’s success was closely followed the Champagne 50, its February close being its best one-year run since September 2018. See Major Market Movers (below) for more.
The Italy 100 drifted ever-so slightly for the second month. It would seem the building tide of 2018 Tuscan releases is having a (momentary?) impact on demand for physical vintages.
The full report contains additional Liv-ex research and analysis:
- Major market movers: Champagne continues to sparkle
- Chart of the month: Regional trade share
- Critical corner: 2018 Tuscan and Napa wines impress critics
- In the news: Open letter to the UK government and new MWs announced
- Final thought: 2009 First Growths on the rise
Liv-ex members on our Silver tier package or higher can download the full report here.
To upgrade your package click here or speak to your Account Manager.
