What pre war issue has taken the biggest price plunge over the past 12-18 months?

[Exhibitman]

It's the economy IMHO because the effects are too widespread to be the result of a few collectors or 'investors' bailing out.

--People who lost their jobs obviously are out.

--People whose businesses took a hit aren't buying.

--People who may not have taken any direct hits still are panicky and holding on to their wallets.

--Dealers who are undercapitalized are liquidating inventory to raise cash.

I don't think the loss of a few collectors with megabucks would act as a downdraft on the rest of the market, any more than the death of a big collector or two affect the entire card market. It's the middle class buyers who are missing.

And I'd not underestimate the side effects of VCP: many buyers won't pay more than the last sale price as reported in VCP and usually offer slightly less for Ebay BINS, which acts as a deflationary pressure on prices.

FWIW, my research on boxing card prices for the next ed. of my book shows that the market for those cards bottomed out last fall and has shown small gains since then.