Is Lafite on the move again?

Château Lafite is taking up an increasing share of trade on Liv-ex as interest in its fellow firsts subsides a little. Is it a brand once again on the move?

As was pointed out on the Liv-ex blog, of all the first growths it is Lafite that is seeing increasing trade on the platform, amid what is currently a period of slight decline for Bordeaux as a whole.

It was recently noted that Bordeaux’s overall share of trade on the secondary market has dropped to below 70% so far this year, with buyers boosting Burgundy, Champagne and other regions instead.

The market share of the first growths has also declined. Between 2010 and 2015 their combined trade share by value was 57.7% but this then dropped sharply to 26% and has fallen to 24.6% so far this year.

Another recent report showed that Latour’s share of trade on the Exchange has plummeted since 2012, dropping from almost 9% to under 3%.

Margaux has actually seen the lowest share of trade among the firsts this year – just 2.6% – while Haut-Brion is down to 3.2% from 4.8% last year. Mouton’s share has held fairly steady.

Very much on the increase though is Lafite, which has grown to 10.3% of all first growth trade.

This is still a long way off its former share of trade in 2010 – a whopping third of all market activity – but a significant step.

A rise in Lafite trading also occurred in 2013 before dropping away again, leading Liv-ex to ponder if this current surge will prove to be another blip or the beginning of Lafite’s rise to dominance once more.