New York Marquee Sales Week Takeaway

After carefully observing Day and Evening auctions at Sotheby's, Christie's and Phillips in New York this May, one key fact was obvious - the art market is not immune to changes in the macroeconomic climate. It is vital to look closely which economic indicators are more determinative, than others.

Stock market does not correlate with art sales: in November, 2022, when Paul G. Allen Collection was sold at Christie's for record-breaking $1.5 billion, the stocks were 5% lower than today. However, higher interest rates, not seen for almost twenty years, have direct impact on liquidity, as cost of capital becomes higher, and, coupled with uncertain future of global economy, have resulted in modest less speculative bidding and cautious behavior of buyers. 'Evening auction sales dropped 41.7% from Spring 2022 and 46.9% from November 2022', (ArtTactic).