Art Auction Houses Predict 25% Bump

The New York art auction season begins today, and Sotheby’s and Christie’s say they believe the art market’s 5-year boom will continue, forecasting $1.8 billion in sales, reports the Financial Times. The prediction of a 25% boost over last year flies in the face of financial-market lassitude and nervousness among collectors and dealers. Prices jumped 18% in 2007.

“Our confidence has been driven by what we have seen in recent months," said Sotheby’s co-chair of Impressionist and modern art. "In London, we had a record-breaking contemporary and Impressionist sale in February, we had a record-breaking Chinese art sale, we had a very strong Russian sale.” (More Sotheby's stories.)