Art Auction Sales Dropped by 25% in 2024 Amid Global Volatility

Public auction sales fell 25% in 2024 amid a broader decline in the global art market last year, according to the latest Art Basel and UBS Art Market Report published Tuesday morning, April 8. 

The annual report, authored by economist Clare McAndrew, found that total global art sales fell by 12% from 2023’s total of $65.2 billion. Last year’s dip, down to $57.7 billion, marks the largest decline in art sales since the pandemic began in 2020, when totals fell about 14.1%. Overall sales also diminished during other election years, including 2012 and 2016, but improved in the following years. In addition to public auction records, the report is based on data from surveys of approximately 1,600 art dealers, 700 galleries, 10 top auction houses, and 85 second-tier auction houses.

While public sales dropped, the report states, private sales facilitated by auction houses flourished, rising by 14% from 2023 to 2024 and contrasting with the general grim outlook on the global art market last year. 

The rise of private transactions amid a downturn in public auctions, McAndrew wrote, often occurs in “more volatile or uncertain periods,” when art sellers prefer to deal in private because they have “greater control and flexibility over pricing and schedules.” When the art market is perceived as doing well, McAndrew said, sellers are enticed to hold auctions, where “higher than normal” prices can be achieved. 

This year, the art market could face additional challenges related to the volatile trade situation, though dealers generally maintained an optimistic outlook on stabilizing sales in 2025. 

“A new element of concern for the market is the protectionist, anti-trade policies that have been introduced,” the report said. “Like other global market hubs, sales in the US are fueled by imports of art and antiques.”

The findings come as the stock market sinks in response to President Trump’s global trade tariffs. The European Union faces a 20% tariff while China — which has the world’s third largest art market, according to the report — now confronts a 54% tariff, though that number is expected to increase to 104% at midnight this Wednesday. 

High tariffs could most impact markets in France, the United Kingdom, and Germany, the US’s largest bilateral trade partners for art, representing 56% of art imports and 41% of exports in 2024, the report says. Tariffs on China, meanwhile, accounted for just 1% of total values in 2024. 

Art suppliers are bracing for higher prices and a greater variety of items as the tariffs threaten pigments from Asia and other materials. 

In the report, McAndrew pointed to inflation and other macroeconomic pressures as contributing to “more reserved spending at higher price points” and a growth in sales of less expensive artworks. The auction market for works under $5,000 actually grew in 2024 by 7%, leading to a rise in the volume of sales last year despite a lower total. 

While public auction sales fell sharply in 2024, the United States maintained its reputation for selling the highest-priced lots at auction, raking in $5.9 billion. And though overall auction sales took a dip, the volume of lower-priced items sold increased, particularly works below $50,000.

Still, the report shows that blue-chip art by recognizable names maintained its place in the market. Rene Magritte’s “L’Empire des Lumières” (1954) sold at Christie’s for $121 million, the highest price achieved for a work at auction last year, breaking the Surrealist artist’s record.