- The rate of decline continues to soften across the 3 main Liv-ex indices
- The Liv-ex Fine Wine 100 fell 0.6% in May, softer than April’s fall.
- The Italy 100 declined by 1.5%, despite being the best-performing index this year to date.
- The Rest of the World 60 rose by 0.8%, buoyed by wines from Acongacua and California.
The rate of decline across Liv-ex’s three main indices is slowing. This trend continued in May.
The Liv-ex Fine Wine 100 fell 0.6% in May, closing at 349.73; milder than April’s drop of 1.3%. In March, the index saw its first increase in 12 months.
Looking at the wider market, the Liv-ex Fine Wine 1000 (which tracks 1,000 wines from across the world) declined by 0.6% compared with April’s 0.7% drop. Among its sub-indices, the Rest of the World 60 increased by 0.8%. While the Champagne 50 saw a smoother decline of 0.2% compared to April and March. The Italy 100 saw the steepest decline, falling back by 1.5% following April’s 0.7% increase. The Bordeaux Legends fell back 1.4% after a flat performance in April.
Finally, the Liv-ex Fine Wine 50 (which tracks the movement of the First Growths and is updated daily) dipped 0.8% in May, slower than its 1.3% fall in April.
The softening decline in the Liv-ex 100
*made using theLiv-ex Charting Tool.
As the Liv-ex 100, the industry’s benchmark indicator of fine wine prices, dropped by a smaller 0.6% in May, 34 of its component wines saw their prices rise over the month.
* prices shown are Liv-ex Mid Prices; 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 620+ of the world’s leading fine wine merchants. Because Liv-ex doesn’t itself trade, this data is truly independent and reliable.
Joseph Drouhin, Montrachet Grand Cru, Marquis de Laguiche, 2020 was the best performing wine amongst the Liv-ex 100 index last week, increasing in value by 11.6%. Two Tuscan wines were also amongst the top performers – Tua Rita, Redigaffi, Toscana 2020 (10.8%) and Tignanello, Toscana 2020 (5.0%).
Despite this, the Italy 100 index declined by 1.5% over the course of May. Even so, it remains the best performing sub-index of the Liv-ex 1000 of the past year.
Of the Liv-ex 100 index’s 66 other components, 56 saw their prices fall, and 10 remained flat during May.
The Rest of the World 60 rises by 0.8%
*made using theLiv-ex Charting Tool.
Among the Liv-ex 1000 sub-indices, only the Rest of the World 60 rose month-on-month in May.
Two vintages of Sena, Aconcagua were the top May price performers in the Rest of the World 60, with the 2012 recording a 20.4% increase and the 2017 recording a 13.5% increase. Screaming Eagle, Cabernet Sauvignon 2014 also secured a spot in the top five.
The Champagne 50, recovering from its 2.2% decline in March and 0.9% decline in April, fell only 0.2% in May. This was largely buoyed by large quantities of Dom Perignon (multiple vintages) being traded at higher prices.
What are Liv-ex indices?
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.
The Liv-ex Fine Wine 1000 Index is broadest measure of the market. It represents the price movement of 1,000 of the most sought-after fine wines on the world’s most active and liquid marketplace. Stretching back over 20 years, the Liv-ex 1000 is comprised of seven sub-indices from across the world: the Bordeaux 500, the Bordeaux Legends 40, the Burgundy 150, the Champagne 50, the Rhône 100, the Italy 100 and the Rest of the World 60.
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 620+ 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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