Covid-19 and the world of wine

While world markets are still in the doldrums, the Liv-ex Fine Wine Index wobbled in March but is down only 1% during this Covid-19 pandemic. This compares to the UK FTSE 100 of leading companies that has dropped 24% since mid February. The fine wine market has held up in part due to the weakness of the pound against both the euro and the US dollar.

The fine wine market may have held up so far, but sales of semi luxury wines, such as champagne, have plunged in France with a 70% decrease in French supermarkets, according to Jean-Marie Barillère, co-president of the Comité Champagne. This is a dramatic fall in France, Champagne's biggest market, following a positive story in 2019 when sales rose to just over 5 billion euros.

In the UK, online retailers, who closed during the initial pandemic, are starting to open up again. The Wine Society opened again for business during the Easter weekend and Naked Wines has started taking orders from new online customers.