- Picasso painting fails to sell – There was no buyer earlier this week for a 1971 Picasso painting, "Woman with Hat," estimated by Sotheby's (NYSE: BID) auction house to go at bid for $16-24 million. Further, an Alberto Giacometti 1951 bronze sculpture of a cat, also with a $16-24 million estimate, was withdrawn. Sotheby's said each fell below their reserve prices, The Associated Press reported.
- New York Yankee ticket plan flops – The Yankees, who opened a New Yankee Stadium in April, dramatically overestimated the demand for luxury and other high-end tickets. Originally priced at over $2,500 per seat per game, the American League baseball club still has thousands of unsold high-end seats, despite dropping the top price to $1,250 per game. In addition, professional ticket brokers -- who buy seats in bulk and try to profit via their sale in the aftermarket -- are having their worst year in a decade: Main Box Seats that go for $60 each on the day of the game ($45 if purchased in advance for the season) have sold for $30, with tickets for some games dipping below $20 on aftermarket sites like stubhub.com.
Market Analysis: These two high-end datapoints underscore the pervasiveness of the belt-tightening: the downturn has affected decision-making at every level of society.
Nuclear power is on the comeback trail
Apple backs AT&T in continuing spat with Verizon
Closing Bell: The recession is still over, still... do you feel it?
