Irish Examiner view: Shortage of champagne could be a good economic omen

Bon viveurs will be chilled by the news, but the bubbly barometer may be signalling good news for the world economy

A reported surge in sales of champagne could reflect a renewed thirst for luxury goods, in turn suggesting growing confidence. Stock picture

Recent reports that Moet Hennessy is running out of champagne is likely to chill the blood of bons viveurs everywhere.

Company chief executive Philippe Schaus confirmed in a recent interview that they are indeed running out of stock, and many other luxury brands reporting increased sales as well: A thirst for the finer things in life now the lockdown era is in the rearview mirror? Perhaps.

In any case, the news that Moet Hennessy expect to replenish their stocks early in the new year should reassure high fliers, if they can only make it through the Christmas period.

Beyond the jokes, however, this news may have more significance than first appears. In the US, economists sometimes refer to the ‘champagne index’, linking sales of bubbly to the state of the economy.

This goes back to the 1980s boom period in America, when sales of champagne rocketed — until that boom ended at the end of the decade, and the demand for champagne evaporated. That process was repeated during the financial crash of the 2000s, when champagne sales halved in value between 2006 and 2009.

There are probably better barometers of a nation’s financial health but none that are quite as enjoyable. Take the (temporary) shortage in Moet Hennessy a good omen, then, as we face into 2023.