By Abby Schultz

Volatility and uncertainty fueled a 12% drop in global art sales last year, led by fewer purchases of the priciest works, per the 2025 Art Basel and UBS Global Art Market Report. The drop, to $57.5 billion in 2024, follows a 4% decline in 2023.

A trade war will make things worse, says the report's author, Art Economics founder Clare McAndrew. The art market has flourished from a "healthy cross-border flow of international trade," she says, particularly in New York. Last year, the U.S. was again the top market, with 43% of sales by value, up 1% year on year. The U.K. was second with 18%, replacing China, which fell to third at 15%. Trade disputes, she says, are "coming at such a bad time because the market has been weaker."

High interest rates and inflation weighed on sales. The number of transactions rose by 3%, due to a higher volume of lower-priced sales. But dollar sales of works valued at $10 million or more sank by 45% after a 40% drop in 2023. Art above $1 million made up 49% of public auction sales by value, down from 55% in 2023. Sales $50,000 and below represented 17% of sales, up from 13% in 2023.

In a challenging market, dealers rely on existing clients to buy rather than spend to find new ones. "You can only do that for so long before it becomes problematic," McAndrew says. She believes people may be shifting money into liquid and income-producing assets rather than buying illiquid art: "They don't want money tied up."

Write to Abby Schultz at abby.schultz@barrons.com

Last Week

Markets

Investors reacted badly to President Donald Trump's tariff "medicine." Wall Street chiefs, joined by Elon Musk, argued against the levies as global markets buckled. The dollar and oil sold off; stocks briefly rose on rumors Trump was pulling back, then plunged as the U.S. escalated tariffs on China to 104% and China counter-escalated with 84% on U.S. goods. On Wednesday, with Treasuries falling, Trump announced a 90-day pause on "reciprocal" tariffs except on China, which he raised to 125%, then 145%. Stocks exploded, with the S&P 500 up 9.5%, then cratered, despite good inflation numbers. China countered to 125% and stocks bounced. On the week, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 5%, the S&P 500, 5.7%, and the Nasdaq Composite, 7.3%.

Companies

Apple airlifted 600 tons of iPhones from China to India and Amazon.com warned of higher-priced Chinese products. The administration froze funding for Cornell and Northwestern and blocked plans for Medicare and Medicaid to pay for obesity drugs, hammering Eli Lilly. Delta Air Lines pulled guidance on signs tourism to the U.S. was falling. A Trump executive order boosted the coal industry. JPMorgan Chase opened first-quarter earnings season with record trading revenue.

Deals

An auditor said CK Hutchison owed Panama $300 million and failed to get clearances to extend its ownership of ports in 2021, further threatening the $22.8 billion sale of its ports to a BlackRock-led group... Prada agreed to buy Versace for $1.38 billion.

Next Week

Monday 4/14

More than 30 S&P 500 companies report quarterly results, highlighted by those in the financial and healthcare sectors. Goldman Sachs Group releases earnings before the opening on Monday, followed by Bank of America, Citigroup, Johnson & Johnson, and PNC Services Financial Group on Tuesday. Abbott Laboratories and U.S. Bancorp announce results on Wednesday, while American Express, Blackstone, Charles Schwab, Netflix, and UnitedHealth Group close out the shortened-trading week on Thursday.

Wednesday 4/16

The Census Bureau releases retail and food services sales for March. Consensus estimate is for a 1.2% month-over-month increase after a 0.2% gain in February. Excluding autos, sales are expected to rise 0.4%, compared with 0.3% previously.

Thursday 4/17

The European Central Bank announces its monetary-policy decision. The ECB is widely expected to cut its key short-term interest rate by a quarter of a percentage point, to 2.25%.

Friday 4/18

Equity and fixed-income markets are closed in observance of Good Friday.

The Numbers

$7.4 T

Total assets in money-market funds, a record, with over $60 billion in new money in early April.

67%

The estimated rise in the cost of an Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max made in China with U.S. tariffs set at 125%.

30 B

Trading volume on U.S. exchanges after Trump's tariff pause, a record, topping Monday's previous high.

$59

Price per barrel of Brent crude oil on Wednesday, the first time in four years the price fell below $60.

Write to Robert Teitelman at bob.teitelman@dowjones.com

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April 11, 2025 21:30 ET (01:30 GMT)

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