2024 Global Art Market Report: Sales Shrink, Chinese Art Market Growing Up Alone

In the 2024 Global Art Market Report from Art Basel and UBS, it was found that the global art market shrank in 2023 due to factors such as high interest rates, inflation, and war. Only the Chinese art market grew. Global art sales last year recorded USD 65 billion, down 4% from the previous year. It is the first time in three years that art sales have decreased, but this figure is still up from $64.4 billion in 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic.

The 2024 Global Art Market Report cited rising interest rates, inflation, war and political instability as factors for the decline in the art trade. This led to collectors choosing works more carefully. In particular, high interest rates seem to have been a burden for some wealthy people who buy art with loans.

By region, the U.S. art market recorded $27.2 billion, down 3% from the previous year. Although sales decreased, the U.S. maintained the top spot, accounting for 42% of the global art market sales. This is attributed mainly to the trend of expensive artworks being sold in New York and London.

Following this, the Chinese art market (including Hong Kong) made notable strides. The volume of transactions increased by nine percent year-on-year to $12.2 billion, surpassing the U.K. as the world’s second-largest art market (19 percent). The growth had a base effect from the aftermath of the pandemic. 

“This is due to the resumption of economic activities as strict COVID-19-related lockdowns eased,” the report said. “The Chinese art market saw a revival in the first half of last year, and the size of the market expanded as major exhibitions such as Art Basel Hong Kong were re-opened for the first time since the pandemic.” However, unlike the active first half of the year, demand slightly declined in the second half due to slowing growth of the Chinese economy and sluggish real estate. It is unclear whether the Chinese art market will continue to grow.

The U.K., which came in second to the U.S. in 2022, fell to third place (17 percent) in 2023, and to $8.9 billion, down eight percent from the previous year. France came in fourth with a seven percent market share. The Japanese market saw a nine percent drop in sales. Art transactions in other major Asian markets, such as South Korea and Singapore, also declined.

The price distribution of purchases of works has changed as well. Despite the economic downturn, there was an active trade in ultra-high-priced works worth more than $10 million in 2022. In 2023, that figure dropped by 40%.

However, transactions of less than $500,000 were active in 2023, up 11%. This is due to the influx of new Millennial and Generation Z collectors, which led to the purchase of mid- to low-priced works online. In particular, online sales of works under $50,000 accounted for 18% of all transactions. This figure was twice the share of 2019. Last year, art transactions online were estimated at $11.8 billion, up 7% from the previous year, and 58% of artworks sold online were under $50,000.