Art Basel, the world’s biggest contemporary art fair, cancelled its 2020 edition in Switzerland due to the coronavirus pandemic, denting its parent company on the stock exchange on Monday.

The fair had already been postponed from this month to September but organisers pulled the plug, saying there were too many uncertainties to stage the international show, which will return next year.

It said in a statement: “Art Basel regrets to announce that the 2020 edition in Basel has been cancelled.

“While there are signs of hope as individual countries are coming out of lockdown, the global situation remains precarious and, unfortunately, too many uncertainties remain to go ahead with the fair.”

It said those included limitations on intercontinental travel, the health risks posed by large gatherings, and doubts over whether Swiss Covid-19 regulations would allow large public events.

“We believe that the best option concerning the Basel show is to focus on next year’s edition and delivering a fair of the exceptional international quality that the art world expects,” it said on Saturday.

The 2021 Basel fair will run from June 17-21.

The share price of parent company MCH Group AG fell further on the Swiss stock exchange on Monday.

MCH, which had already lost 41 per cent of its value since the start of January, fell 3.05 per cent to 15.90 Swiss francs ($16.60) in afternoon trading.

By comparison, the SPI index of the top 215 companies on the Swiss exchange was down 0.28 per cent.

The Swiss government stopped short of imposing full confinement to combat the coronavirus pandemic.

But the restrictions it brought in led to the cancellation of major events, including the Geneva Motor Show and the main watch fairs.

Events for up to 300 people can now go ahead with appropriate protection measures.