Hong Kong art auctions offer quality pieces despite economic slowdown
Amid a slowdown in the art market, top-notch pieces are harder, but not impossible, to find. Enid Tsui looks at what's going under the hammer
It is a good thing that two of the world's largest auction houses - China's state-owned Poly Culture Group and Sotheby's - are listed on stock markets because their financial disclosures have to tell it like it is.
On August 25, Poly's half-year report stated: "In the first half of 2015 … the artwork auction market was bleak. A dozen sizeable companies even suspended organising spring auctions." Revenue from its art auctions and other related businesses have dropped 27 per cent from a year ago.
Tad Smith, Sotheby's new chief executive, acknowledged that the second quarter was "rather bumpy", and the New York-listed company lost US$8 million by guaranteeing sales of works that sold for less than the sellers were promised.
Judging by the recent fall in Sotheby's and Poly's share prices, many investors believe the art market is going to get worse. The steep rise in auction prices in recent years has had a lot to do with the economic growth in China and other emerging markets, growth that now faces a severe headwind.
There is some nervousness in the build-p to Hong Kong's autumn auction season, starting in the first week of October.
Good, rare objects can always find buyers among serious collectors. The trickiest job for auction houses in a downturn is to convince collectors to part with their better pieces, and be willing to accept more conservative asking prices.