The Collector | Christie’s Hong Kong spring auction sales fall 13pc; Chinese works of art fare poorly
One sale sees fewer than half the lots knocked down, and at others a quarter or more fail to find buyers; auction house’s global president confident that sale volumes have bottomed out
Auctioneer Christie’s raised 13 per cent less from its spring sales in Hong Kong this year than in 2015, with sales of Chinese works of art particularly disappointing. A special 30th anniversary auction featuring some heavily promoted lots was not enough to offset lower sales on other days. Total sales for the week were HK$2.8 billion, including commission.
Only 59 per cent of lots in Christie’s “Classical Chinese Art from Sui to Song Dynasties” auction on June 1 were sold. Unusually, that sale did better on that measure than the “Imperial Sale” on the same day, which had a paltry sell-through rate of 49 per cent.
According to Tsang Chi-fan, specialist head of Christie’s department of Chinese ceramics and works of art, buyers in Hong Kong have traditionally preferred Ming- and Qing-dynasty Imperial wares to older items in less pristine condition, so this may suggest that market is evolving.
