What’s happening in the market?
Giacomo Conterno’s Barolo Monfortino Riserva 2019 is the top-traded wine of the week so far by value, potentially marking its third consecutive week amongst the top five.
Market focus: UK buyers
Though influenced by the international diversification of Liv-ex’s member base, UK buyers do appear to have lost some of the dominance they previously held over the secondary market. In 2005, 74% of buyers hailed from the UK, accounting for 76% of purchasing (by volume). By 2010, they made up 56% of buyers and accounted for 55% of purchased volume. With the release of the 2009 and 2010 Bordeaux vintages capturing the attention of not only Asian buyers but also UK buyers (historically Bordeaux’s largest export target), their share rose once again. Disillusionment with En Primeur pricing and, as a byproduct, Bordeaux, set in quickly; a drop in trade levels followed. UK buyers have consistently maintained a c.30% share of traded volume over the past decade.
Considering monthly purchasing (by volume) alongside the Liv-ex 1000 reveals a relationship between volumes purchased by UK buyers and price levels. Intuitively, when prices are driven down to levels where buyers see value, trade volumes rise. The Liv-ex 1000 is the broadest measure of the market; the strengthening of this relationship shows that while UK buyers have ceded some of their market share, they have become more influential over a broader range of regions as their purchasing has diversified. In 2020 for example, the Bordeaux 500 underperformed relative to the Liv-ex 1000. Where the uptick in UK purchasing in 2010 benefitted Bordeaux above other regions, the uptick in 2020 benefitted those other regions more than Bordeaux.
Until 2018, Bordeaux consistently comprised over 50% of UK buyers’ annual purchasing. Since then, its share has declined, settling around 30%, generally neck-and-neck with Burgundy.
Which wines do UK buyers favour?
While Petrus and Chateau Lafite Rothschild are the top-traded wines of the year amongst UK buyers, Screaming Eagle’s Oakville Cabernet Sauvignon has superseded Chateau Mouton Rothschild to take third place, and Cristal has claimed fifth. Sassicaia and DRC’s Romanee-Conti follow not far behind in the sixth and seventh positions.
By 2015, First Growths had been displaced by a broader range of Bordeaux’s heavy hitters, and by 2020, by Californians, Burgundies and Barolos. Bordeaux may once have dominated the UK’s fine wine market; it now shares its stage with other regions.
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 £140m of bids and offers across 20,000 wines.
