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UK Art Market Growth Lags Behind Rivals, Report Finds

A new report on 30 years of the British art market finds its growth lags behind rival hubs


The Art Journal29 October, 2026
PUBLIC Gallery in the Middlesex Street Estate, London. Courtesy: PUBLIC Gallery, London.

PUBLIC Gallery in the Middlesex Street Estate, London. Courtesy: PUBLIC Gallery, London.

The UK art market has more than tripled in size over three decades but is growing more slowly than its chief competitors, according to a report published this week to mark the 30th anniversary of the British Art Market Federation (BAMF).

The report, by Arts Economics, finds the UK remains the world’s second-largest market by value, rising from £2.6 billion in 1996 to £8bn in 2025, and holding around half of European sales. But since its 2009 low point, UK sales have risen 17 percent, against 114 percent in the US and 51 percent globally.

Cross-border trade is narrowing. Imports have fallen 45 percent since 2015, to £2.2bn; exports dropped 15 percent year on year, to just under £3.2bn – the US, once the destination for 72 percent of British exports, now takes just over a third.

Regulation is the barrier the federation puts front and centre. ‘Over-complicated and excessive’ rules fall hardest on the small and micro businesses that form the trade’s backbone, says BAMF Chairman Thomas Christopherson – with 89 percent of UK dealers and galleries reporting sales of £1m or less, that is most of the trade.

The art market supports an estimated 53,290 jobs and generated £1.5bn in tax last year.

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