- The Liv-ex 100 rose by 0.2% in March, following a 0.4% rise in February after four months of decline.
- Its two-month consecutive growth is encouraging, but not yet enough to correct the 1.85% of losses recorded since October 2022.
*made using the Liv-ex Charting Tool
The Liv-ex Fine Wine 100 rose 0.2% in March, closing at 416.07. This small increase continues the trend of cautious growth which began in February, after four months of consecutive decline.
Once again, the Liv-ex Fine Wine 100 was the only major index to see a positive movement last month. The Liv-ex Fine Wine 50 (which tracks the movement of First Growths) fell by 0.2%, while the Liv-ex Fine Wine 1000 (which tracks 1,000 wines from around the world) remained flat.
The Liv-ex Fine Wine 100’s very small movements highlight the trade’s risk aversion in light of the global financial and political turbulence experienced in Q1. This cautious growth is also not enough to outweigh the 1.85% of losses recorded since October 2022. Year-to-date the index is still down 0.8%. However, this small rise feels like an improvement, especially considering the tough market conditions.
As mentioned in our April Market Report, the secondary market is tentatively beginning to find its feet after a slow start to the year. Trade was up by both value and volume this month, adding to February’s improvements. The market also broadened as 2,245 different wine labels (LWIN11s) traded – the highest monthly amount year-to-date.
What’s driving the index?
Performance was evenly split across the 100 wines in the index, with 47 wines seeing their prices rise, 47 falling, and 6 remaining flat.
The equal distribution of risers and fallers makes it difficult to identify any firm drivers of the index this month. However it’s interesting to note the prevalence of Burgundy in the top ten performers, with Domaine Georges Roumier Bonnes Mares Grand Cru 2019, Domaine Ponsot Clos de la Roche Grand Cru Cuvee Vielles Vignes 2019,Domaine Francois Raveneau Chablis Premier Cru Montee de Tonnerre 2018, Domaine Comte Georges de Vogue Musigny Grand Cru Cuvee Vielles Vignes 2019 all rising more than 5% in price.
That said, Burgundy was also amongst the biggest fallers this month, with Domaine de la Romanee-Conti’s Richebourg Grand Cru 2018,La Tache Grand Cru 2018 and Romanee-Conti Grand Cru 2018 falling by 10.7%, 4.3% and 3.4% respectively.
Our January report on Burgundy considered the future of the secondary market in the region and whether its exponential price rises can be sustained. Our March market report also found that Burgundy prices will reamin bullish in the short termwhen applying technical analysis to the Burgundy 150 index.
Californian wines continued February’s trend and made impressive gains last month, with Napa Valley’s Harlan Estate 2018 and Dominus 2019 rising by 11.4% and 4.7% respectively.
March’s top performers
The table above shows the best-performing wines in the Liv-ex 100 index in March. Domaine Jean Louis Chave Hermitage Rouge 2019 recorded the largest price increase (16.6%), followed by Napa Valley’s Harlan Estate 2018, up by 11.4%.
Burgundy’s Domaine Georges Roumier Bonnes Mares Grand Cru 2019, and Domaine Ponsot Clos de la Roche Grand Cru Cuvee Vielles Vignes 2019 rose by 10.1% and 7.6% respectively, closely followed by Masseto Toscana 2019 (7%).
What is the Liv-ex 100 index?
The Liv-ex Fine Wine 100 Index is the industry leading benchmark. It represents the price movement of 100 of the most sought-after fine wines on the world’s most active and liquid marketplace from France, Italy, USA, Australia and Spain. Stretching back over 20 years, the Liv-ex 100 is quoted on Bloomberg and Reuters screens.
All Liv-ex indices are calculated using our Mid Price; the mid-point between the highest live bid and lowest live offer on the market. These are the firm commitments to buy and sell at that price; transactional data rather than list prices. It represents the actual trading activity of 600 of the world’s leading fine wine merchants. Because Liv-ex doesn’t itself trade, this data is truly independent and reliable.
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Liv-ex analysis is drawn from the world’s most comprehensive database of fine wine prices. The data reflects the real time activity of Liv-ex’s 620 merchant members from across the globe. Together they represent the largest pool of liquidity in the world – currently £80m of bids and offers across 20,000 wines.
