Global Economic Slump? June Art Sales Expected To Set Records

The big June art sales, which start Tuesday in London, are expected by the auction houses to break more records as collectors from commodities-rich regions such as Russia and the Middle East emerge to fuel the decade-long boom in the art market.

Sotheby's and Christie's, the two main auction houses, together estimate they will sell about £400m ($790m) in artworks over 10 days at the sales of Impressionist, Modern and contemporary art. The boom in oil and other commodities is helping support the art market. Prices of artworks have continued to rise and Sotheby's said that the number of new buyers in the art market was also rising. It said 21 per cent of its lots last year were bought by new buyers.

"Bidders from the Middle East, China, Russia and India have become twice as active, redefining the size and scope of the art market," the auction house said.

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