Three countries and two auction houses dominate the global art market
In 2022, the United States topped the ranking of the leading countries in the global art market, followed by the United Kingdom and China. These three markets cumulatively held 80 percent of the total sales value. When focusing on public auction revenue of fine art and NFTs worldwide, the U.S. led the market again, reporting over seven billion U.S. dollars in sales in 2022, with China ranking second and the UK third.In terms of auction sales, two auction houses, both founded in London during the 18th century, dominate the market: Christie’s and Sotheby’s. In 2022, total sales of Christie’s worldwide, including public auctions and private sales, amounted to over 8.4 billion U.S. dollars, the highest figure recorded by the company to date. Global sales of Sotheby’s also reached a new high that year, peaking at approximately eight billion U.S. dollars. In terms of revenue, Heritage Auctions, Phillips, and Bonhams followed as leading auction houses worldwide in 2022, all generating sales below two billion U.S. dollars.
