The Long-Term Investment That Easily Beats Gold, Art, Stamps, and Wine

Few things in life are better than fine wine. That’s especially true when it comes to long-term investing. As in really long-term. According to the Credit Suisse Global Investment Returns Yearbook 2018, produced with data from the London Business School, over the past 118 years an investment in premium vino generated an average annual return of 3.7%—better than gold, real estate, art, or even stamps. The one asset class wine couldn’t beat: stocks. From Dec. 31, 1899, through Dec. 31, 2017, the authors calculate, a basket of global equities from 23 countries returned 5.2% annually. U.S. stocks alone performed even better: 6.5% per year.