Fine wine market stabilised during H1 as US buyers ‘re-engaged’

US buyers have re-engaged in the fine wine market in the second quarter of the year, the lasts data from Liv-ex shows, offsetting Asian buyers, who have taken “more of a backseat”.

The US stood out as a region whose purchasing has increased in 2026, the Liv-ex H2 Report said. It found that while other buying regions saw their purchasing drift during the second quarter, US buyers took an overall 26.9% share of the purchase value in fine wine during Q2. This was well above the 2025 average of 20.7%, and also marked an uptick from Q1’s 23.3% share.

Liv-ex argued that “this was always likely to happen as participants from across the various tiers of the US supply chain work out how to navigate tariffs and as stocks naturally deplete over time.”

It also pointed out that US buyers played a role in supporting price stability, buying wines on the Fine Wine 1000 at an average of 1.1% above the market price in Q2, compared to a 0.03% mark up in Q1.

The health of the US market bodes well for the remainder of the year, it noted, with price stability appearing “likely to continue”.

“Should US buying increase over H2 and purchase prices continue at or above Market Price, one can expect further price stability,” it said.

Meanwhile, Asian buyers took “more of a backseat” over the course of the year to date. “While global prices have stabilised, local trade prices have continued to soften with large-under-the-table sales going through.

It also noted the increase in shipping costs – by up to 60% in some instances – on the back of the Iran War, which it said was having a direct impact on buying. It also noted that with private collectors effectively driving the market, as fine wine merchants bought less stock and remained more risk-averse, “anything that gives collectors cause to fear for their future wealth has a direct detrimental impact on the market”.

“With the Iran War peace deal looking fragile (at time of writing), it follows that inflationary pressure might rise again. This might give collectors one additional (and unwelcome) consideration when faced with an offer,” it said.

Positive outlook

Stabilisation is a key theme in the report -with all major fine wine indices stabilising in the first half of the year. Even though Q2 saw many of the vintages that make up the Fine Wine 1000 fall rather than rise, the gains of those that did rise offset those that fell. This indicated that “top-line price stability has not yet translated into enough confidence (or demand) for overall trade levels to rise.”

However, overall the outlook remains better than it was 12 months ago.

“For certain brands and vintages, there is enough demand at current price levels to support them, with a number of wines now combining price rises with sustained trade,” it said. “While it remains a market defined overwhelmingly by caution, for canny buyers there are reasons to be considering it a time of quiet opportunity.”

 

 

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