Chrisites First Half Sales Drop 35%

ArtInfo is reporting very poor first half 2009 sales results for Christie's. Because of the YSL sale, Paris was the top sales location for the first time. I hope to have Sotheby's results soon and will post as soon as they are available.

It is a short article, so I will take the liberty of posting it in full.

LONDON— Christie’s has reported a dismal first half for 2009, with international sales down 35 percent. Contemporary art sales in New York and London were particularly hard hit, with numbers dropping 70 percent from the same period last year. The bright spot among Christie’s auctions was the City of Lights: For the first time, Paris was the house’s top seller, boosted by the €373.9 million ($483.8 million) sale of late fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent's pieces in February.

In 2008, auction houses abandoned the practice of guaranteeing a minimum price to be brought in at auction; that, coupled with the slow economy, left sellers wary to put their artwork on the block.

Christie’s, owned by French billionaire Francois Pinault, has also struggled to afford a full staff. Since the beginning of the year, 200 jobs have been cut company-wide.