Skip to main content

Tempering expectations 
PREMIUM
CONTENT

The Liv-ex May Market Report has been published exclusively for members on our Silver package or above. The following is an extract.      

Liv-ex members on our Silver package or above can access the full report here. To upgrade your package, click here or speak to your Account Manager.

While April gave us a glimpse of sunshine, the May numbers remind us that spring often comes with rainy spells.  

The Liv-ex Fine Wine 100, the industry benchmark fell 1.3% in April following its 0.4% rise in March. The Liv-ex Fine Wine 50, which tracks the movement of the First Growths and is updated daily, also fell 1.3% in April, a sharper drop than its 0.6% drop the previous month.  

The Liv-ex Fine Wine 1000, which tracks 1,000 wines from across the world, fell 0.7% month-on-month, in line with its 0.6% fall in March. Of its sub-indices, the Italy 100 was the only one to record a positive movement, rising 0.7% month-on-month. The index has been one of the most resilient since the start of the year – it is only down 0.2% year-to-date. 

The Bordeaux Legends 40 remained flat, while its counterpart tracking younger Bordeaux vintages, the Bordeaux 500, recorded a relatively modest fall of 0.6%. The Burgundy 150 and the Rhône 100 did not fare so well, falling 1.3% and 1.0% respectively.  

While prices took a further tumble, the mood music in the market is not as sombre as the numbers suggest. Indeed, April saw a slight uptick in trade value and volume on Liv-ex, as well as in the number of labels (LWIN7s) and individual wines (LWIN11s) traded.   

Will the En Primeur campaign deliver the prices, volumes and quality needed to further improve the mood? The early signs are not convincing.  

The full report contains additional Liv-ex research and analysis:

  • Ahead of the 2023 En Primeur campaign buyers have been looking for back-vintage opportunities.
  • With the influx of En Primeur 2023 scores, we look the few wines which contenders for perfect scores, and perhaps most tellingly, fewer still are the subject of broad consensus amongst critics.
  • Are the Bordeaux 2023 price cuts enough to make up for a string of difficult campaigns?
  • The Burgundy index has now dropped by over 20% from its peak and has declined for 14 consecutive months since March 2023 – what does a technical analyst have to say?
  • Its good time to be a US buyer – Dollar strength provides buying opportunities.

Liv-ex members on our Silver package or above can access the full report here. To upgrade your package, click hereor speak to your Account Manager.    

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 £100m of bids and offers across 20,000 wines.               

Independent data, direct from the market.