Rising value: Glenmorangie is among Europe’s elite

Two of Scotland’s best known single malt Scotch whiskies have just become part of the first company in Europe to hit a market valuation of $500 billion (£401bn).

The milestone came yesterday as shares in the Paris-listed Moët Hennessy-Louis Vuitton (LVMH) hit a new high, having risen by about a third this year. It makes the firm the world’s tenth biggest, ahead of Visa and just behind Tesla.

Glenmorangie, the Highland single malt and Ardbeg Islay, have been owned since 2004 by LVMH which has soared in value as luxury goods defy the cost-of-living slump.

Much of the rise in the company’s value has been attributed to a rebound in the Chinese luxury market following the lifting of the country’s Covid policy.

Europe and the US have also remained resilient despite economic pressures weighing down consumer spend.

LVMH, whose brands include Christian Dior, Tiffany, Givenchy, Celine and Stella McCartney, is the only European name among the top 10 firms in the world by market value, a list dominated by US technology groups such as Apple.

Just two weeks ago LVMH boss Bernard Arnault became only the third person – and the first non-American – in history to amass a personal fortune estimated at between $200billion (£160bn) and $243bn, depending on who is doing the sums.

Whichever way his wealth is calculated the so-called “Wolf in Cashmere” is now regarded as the world’s richest man, ahead of both Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos.

In January, the 74-year-old appointed his daughter Delphine as the head of Christian Dior – laying the groundwork to keep the company under family control.