Art Dealers and Galleries NAICS 459920

Mar 20, 2025 - Decline in the Global Art Market

• According to the 2024 Artprice Global Art Market Report, the global art auction market experienced a slowdown in 2024, generating $9.9 billion, representing a year-over-year decrease of 33.5%. The decline can be attributed to global tensions that caused wealthy art buyers to be cautious, leading to a drop in high-value sales. Despite the downturn, the global art market’s base is expanding. In 2024, 1.2 million artworks were offered in fine art auction sales worldwide, with 804,350 lots sold - a 5% increase that set a new historic record. The unsold rate was 33% in 2024, returning to its historical average level. In terms of global market share by value, the top markets were the US (39%), the EU (18.5%), and China (18.4%). The contemporary art category accounted for 17% of the worldwide art market.
• According to a report in CFO Dive, consumer confidence levels, an indicator of discretionary spending, have fallen due to consumer anxiety about tariff effects and economic uncertainty. The consumer sentiment index from the University of Michigan dropped 11% in March 2025, marking the third straight month of declines and hitting the lowest level since November 2022. In addition, the Conference Board index of consumer sentiment in February 2025 marked the biggest decline since August 2021 and the third straight month of declines. According to Stephanie Guichard, senior economist for global indicators at the Conference Board, “There was a sharp increase in the mentions of trade and tariffs, back to a level unseen since 2019. Most notably, comments on the current administration and its policies dominated the responses.”

• Art-related NFT (nonfungible token) sales have fallen dramatically since 2021, declining from $232 million at auction in 2021 to $9 million in 2024, according to a report in Artprice.com. The volume of art-related NFT sales has increased during the period, from 316 NFTs sold in 2021 to 350 NFTs sold in 2024. The sale of the first art-related NFT at Christie’s for $69.3 million took place in 2021, and many art sellers adopted new strategies to attract NFT buyers in the emerging digital art market. The US is the most active NFT sales country, accounting for 93% of global sales of NFTs in 2024 and an auction total of $8.9 million. According to the report, the art-related NFT market is settling into a sustainable realistic rhythm, with a more stable foundation to build a solid market base.
• The art world is gearing up for a second Donald Trump presidency, after enduring several challenges during his first administration, according to several art publications. During his first administration, Trump called for the elimination of the National Endowment for the Arts in his 2018 and 2021 budgets and targeted the funding for other arts and cultural organizations, according to ART News. Another proposal during Trump’s first administration was to target Chinese art and antiquities with a 25-percent import tariff, according to ArtNet. Modifications to other regulations could also affect the art market. For example, a change made by the Trump administration in the 2018 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act eliminated a tax loophole for art collectors.