The Collector | Sotheby’s stays upbeat amid global slowdown and turmoil in Hong Kong

An 18th century Qing dynasty glass vase estimated to be worth US$25 million is up for grabs, among other items, in Sotheby’s’ October sales, but as the Asian auction season rolls around, will buyers be willing to open their wallets?

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Among the items to be auctioned at Sotheby’s Hong Kong’s October sales is a dragon stem bowl from the Xuande period (1426-35) of the Ming dynasty.

Enid Tsui

Published: 10:00pm, 5 Sep 2019Updated: 5:29pm, 10 Sep 2019

The United States-China trade war, the extradition bill protests in Hong Kong, the global economic slowdown: the Asian auction season has rarely opened on such a gloomy note.

Sotheby’s, which is going through its own internal drama over a privatisation deal to be voted on by shareholders, has made contingency plans for its autumn auctions in case overseas and mainland Chinese buyers steer clear of Hong Kong because of the travel warnings.

According to Kevin Ching Sau-hong, chief executive of Sotheby’s Asia, additional phone lines will be installed in the sales rooms to cater to an increase in remote bidding. Other than that, he hopes it will all be business as usual.

“Every season there are different policies and factors that might affect buying sentiments and decisions, including the macroeconomic environment, economic growth and market expectation, among others,” he says. “Many of them have been in place for some time, yet we haven’t seen any major impact on our business.”

Sotheby’s Hong Kong spring auctions took in HK$3.8 billion (US$485 million) in total, the second highest level since 2013.

An 18th century glass vase that once owned by Prince Gong of the Qing dynasty and is estimated to be worth HK$200 million will go on auction at Sotheby’s in October.