Christie’s to operate independently in China

PanARMENIAN.Net - Christie’s auction house said it was granted a license that would enable it to become the first international auction house to operate independently in China, which has overtaken the United States as the world’s largest art and auction market, The New York Times reported.

The move allows Christie’s to sell directly to buyers from a growing class of wealthy collectors in China, many of whom have been spending vast sums of money in recent years on fine art, wine, watches, jewelry and other items at auctions around the world.

Sotheby’s and Christie’s have been operating in Hong Kong for several decades and have seen their business explode in the city, which is governed separately.

But the world’s two biggest auction houses have long sought greater access to mainland China to cultivate collectors, hold auctions and compete with China’s own formidable auction houses, Beijing Poly International and China Guardian, entities that have recently moved into the ranks of the world’s biggest auction houses.

Last year Sotheby’s formed a joint venture in Beijing with the state-owned Beijing Gehua Cultural Development Group to hold auctions in China. Sotheby’s is the 80 percent owner of that enterprise.

Now Christie’s has signed its own agreement with the City of Shanghai and plans to hold its first auction this fall, although the company said the agreement restricted it from dealing in “cultural relics.” The company can operate throughout China but will be based in Shanghai and pay taxes there.

Last year revenue in China’s auction market was estimated at more than $4 billion, down sharply from $9 billion in 2011, when the market was blistering hot. Auction revenue in the United States market was estimated at more than $3 billion in 2012.

But China’s homegrown auction houses have been troubled by fakes, smuggling and longstanding suspicions of price manipulation.