London Auctions Surge Past Half Billion as Post-Brexit Market Rebounds

On Wednesday, Sotheby's London set new European benchmarks by generating over half a billion dollars in a single evening through its Lewis Collection sale and modern and contemporary auction. The total of £296.3 million ($392.6 million) from the Lewis sale combined with £97.1 million ($128.1 million) from the evening auction amounted to $520.7 million, exceeding the $85.7 million achieved in June 2024 by more than five times. This figure also eclipsed the auction house's last pre-Brexit June evening sale in 2015, which was $280.1 million ($393.4 million adjusted for inflation). A third of the buyers were Asian collectors. Meanwhile, Christie's Thursday sale totaled £25.6 million ($33.8 million), significantly higher than its $11.4 million 2024 auction. Phillips' Friday sale earned £11.9 million ($15.7 million) from 90 lots. Despite this growth, the UK art market still lags behind its pre-Brexit levels, with political stability and a solid trade relationship with Europe yet to be established.