This invitation was forwarded to me:
You are cordially invited to join us in celebrating the opening of
Poly International Auction�s New York Office
Monday, March 19th, 2012
4:30 - 6:30 pm
at
The Harvard Club
27 West 44th Street
New York, NY 10036
Please RSVP at info@polyauction.us
Admittance by invitation only. Business attire requested.
Food and beverages will be served.
This office will for the moment at least seek consignments for Poly auctions in China. But presumably in the not so distant future Poly may decide to auction off Chinese material here. If so, Poly will presumably use its connections at home to secure any necessary export permits -- something that no doubt will be much harder-- if not impossible-- for its US competitors to secure.
More evidence that the State Department's MOU with China and CBP's import restrictions on a wide variety of Chinese cultural goods have done nothing but provide connected Chinese auction houses with a competitive advantage against US based auction houses.
Poly International Auctions was formed by officers of the Chinese People's Liberation Army.
For more, see http://www.jingdaily.com/en/culture/auction-house-beijing-poly-sets-opening-date-for-new-york-office/