Ritchie hails first Chinese auction as 'big success'

Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers described its first Chinese auction, held in Beijing on 18 April, as a “big success” with 155 new and used heavy equipment up for sale and around 1000 people attending.

More than 500 bidders registered to bid on equipment, with overseas bidders buying 17% of the equipment. Some 150 online bidders registered for the sale and these bidders bought 14% of the lots.

The on-site crowd was largely made up of local equipment end users from Beijing and the surrounding Hebei province, said Ritchie, as well as from provinces across China, including Guangdong, Henan, Liaoning, Sichuan, Chongqing and Jiangsu.

"Last week's auction in China was a big success - we delivered on our promise to bring Ritchie Bros. unreserved auctions to China," said Stephen Branch, vice president, sales, Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers.

"We had bidders register from across China and around the world. We look forward to serving the Chinese and global equipment marketplace from our new site in the Beijing Tianzhu Free Trade Zone, where equipment owners will enjoy the convenience of being in close proximity to one of China's largest ports."

Ritchie Bros. has leased land in the Beijing Tianzhu Free Trade Zone (Shunyi, Beijing), which is located very close to Beijing Capital International Airport. Tianzhu Free Trade Zone is connected to ports in Tianjin.

Chris Edwards, Ritchie Bros. general manager, who is based in China, said; “We want to thank all Chinese government authorities who have helped us reach this incredible milestone”.