Hong Kong: the March sales came back, the depth did not

MARKET DESK · HONG KONG

The spring 2026 modern and contemporary sales in Hong Kong did what the market needed them to do. Sotheby's evening sale on 29 March sold all 54 lots and made HK$548.4 million (US$70.3 million), up more than 50 per cent on March 2025, according to Sotheby's.

The top lot was La Grande Vallée VII (1983) by Joan Mitchell, which sold to an online bidder for HK$137.35 million (US$17.6 million). It is now the highest price paid at auction in Asia for a work by a woman artist. Mark Rothko's No. 10 (1949) followed at HK$66.78 million, well past its HK$40 million high estimate.

Across the week, HENI's analysis puts Christie's three modern and contemporary sales at US$113.3 million and Sotheby's at US$89 million, both including fees (HENI, Christie's; HENI, Sotheby's). Christie's was led by a 1991 Gerhard Richter Abstraktes Bild at US$11.78 million, and set a new record for Walter Spies at US$7.56 million.

The depth is where the rebound runs out. In real terms, Christie's total was 40 per cent below the average for comparable Hong Kong sales, and Sotheby's was nearly 50 per cent below. Christie's offered 180 lots, 37 per cent fewer than its historic average. Phillips had a harder week: its day and evening sales made US$11.3 million, nearly 60 per cent down on its previous comparable sales (HENI, Phillips).

What it means for collectors: buyers are back for proven, fresh-to-market material, and guarantees are holding. Sellers are still holding back the volume, so expect thin supply and firm prices at the top through Art Week in March 2027, when ARTWATCH launches at Art Central.

Figures are as published by the houses and HENI, in US dollars with fees unless stated.