Not all was lost in 2020. (credits: Burst, on Stocksnap)
Dear reader,
How was the New Year? Hopefully you enjoyed as much as we did, with fine wines and hopes for an easier and less worrisome 2021.
Well, good news (for a change!).
When it comes to fine wine, the silver linings are real: in 2020, despite an unprecedented pandemic in global times that deeply affected the wine industry (among many others), the market withstood the year and, overall, showed encouraging signs that a brighter future could be ahead.
Enduring through hard times
Amidst covid-19 and its ever-changing developments, wine sales were up in many places.
In the United States, Champagne sales have been booming, whilst so-called premium wines (over 20 US dollars) were the fastest-growing segment. Direct-to-consumer sales were up approximately 222 million USD for the first half compared to 2019, according to latest estimates.
Despite British uncertainties regarding Brexit, local figures for fine wine sales were also up, with second growth faring well above flagship wines. Champagne and Italian wines have been experiencing big gains. Asian imports, instead, have benefited off the weakening of the sterling.
Europe, meanwhile, has faced challenges with US tariffs (25% on European goods), which have hurt some segments. In the coming weeks and months, tariffs will probably show a clearer effect on Burgundy, Bordeaux and others, but nevertheless maintained positive figures in the industry’s leading indexes.
What’s next for fine wine trading and investment?
The fine wine market, as a whole, has been terribly affected by Covid. Especially when we talk hospitality: wine and dinner truly has suffered a lot.
But trading kept on going strong. Why, you ask? Because fine wine works as an alternative investment asset with low volatility and strong long-term gains.
In 2020, benchmarks for fine wine were showing stable, positive territory year-to-date by December, whilst indices for equities such as DAX, FTSE 100 and Hang Seng fell below.
In the meantime, overall trends on our Wine Investment Report launched just last year!
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When it comes to fine wine, trading and sales in 2021 will depend on Covid. Can’t escape it. If current vaccines prove to be the long-term solution we had been hoping for, the hospitality sector might normalize soon enough to see encouraging new numbers.
However, the economy has been suffering significantly, and a larger crisis is always a concern. Diversification will be key to get through.
For overall European commerce and also US imports and exports, tariffs will be important to watch too. Will the Biden administration reverse course? What will it mean for European exports?
It’s never too late to join the trend as an individual investor.
For far too long, the idea of fine wine investment has been restricted to big merchants and investors. But individual investors can look ahead for protection and strong gains right now, trading with Alti Wine Exchange.
We at Alti Wine Exchange, as you know by know, procure directly from the most reputable worlwide producers the best fine and rare wines that can work as tangible assets for investors of different profiles and strategies.
With our monthly launches and our secondary marketplace, you can trade fine wines sourced directly from producers with full safety and big appreciation expected for the long term.
For 2021, our mission remains that of providing our customers not only the market trends in fine wine, but bottles of those timeless wines that will only grow in value for the future.
And, no wonder, 2021 could just be the year of hard assets such as fine wine precisely because of the economic uncertainties that surround traditional investment assets, as our founding member Paulo Pinto suggested a while ago.
Join our trend and stay tuned, as much more is coming.
Until next time!