- The Liv-ex 100 index rose 1.9% in September.
- Sterling weakness continues to make fine wine prices appear attractive.
- Burgundian, Bordelais, US and Italian labels led the best-performing wines.
*made using the Liv-ex Charting Tool
The Liv-ex Fine Wine 100 rose 1.9% last month, closing September at 424.35. The benchmark index has dipped just once this year, back in July, but has more than made up for that very marginal loss over August and September.
The Liv-ex Fine Wine 50, which tracks the movement of the First Growths, also rose last month, up 1.5% to close at 411.09.
The big story in September, as it was in August, was currency. The US Dollar continued to climb in value throughout the month to hit historic highs against Sterling and continue to maintain parity with the Euro.
Then, towards the end of September, a ‘mini budget’ by new Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng caused the value of Sterling to crash to a low of US$1.07 to the pound. Although it managed to close the month at $1.12 this still represented a 3.7% decline over the month, taking the market lower still for USD buyers.
September’s top performers
September’s top performers came from a variety of regions. The most notable was Château Figeac in St-Emilion.
The estate received its much-anticipated elevation to Premier Grand Cru Classé ‘A’ last month in the 2022 Classification, joining Château Pavie at the top of the appellation’s hierarchy.
The promotion had an immediate effect on the market, with four vintages setting new trading highs in the wake of the announcement.
The 2015 rose 12.8% from August to September, it was rated 100-points by Jane Anson this April.
Château Figeac 2015 trades
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 600 merchant members from across the globe. Together they represent the largest pool of liquidity in the world – currently £80m of bids and offers across 16,000 wines. Independent data, direct from the market.
