British wine merchants are selling fine wine back to merchants in Bordeaux and exporting it to Asia as domestic demand for the most expensive wine slumps and sterling weakens against the euro.
Tom Hudson, a director at Farr Vintners, the biggest Bordeaux specialist in the UK, said: “The trade within the UK has slowed down dramatically. . . we're relying heavily on exports now.” He said Asia had replaced the US as a key export market.
Traders say Bordeaux merchants began buying wine back from the UK – the key global market for fine wine trading – early last year, as sterling dropped against the euro, with some buying more in recent months as the economic crisis hit and sterling weakened further.