Just weeks after auction house Christie's announced record profits (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/07/23/auction-round-up-record-s_n_906349.html) for first half 2011, Sotheby's announced its own record of $3.4 billion in six months, edging out Christie's $3.2 billion. The houses unanimously credit this boom to growth in Asian markets, particularly China, which has ramped up its participation in the global market at an unprecedented rate this year.Artinfo quotes (http://www.artinfo.com/news/story/38263/sothebys-claims-record-first-half-citing-growth-of-the-asian-market/) Sotheby's CEO Bill Ruprecht, who now sees China as one of "three legs to the stool" of the art market, with the US and the Euro zone.More... (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/08/05/sothebys-breaks-record-in_n_918809.html)