Swiss watch exports hit a new record in 2022, climbing 11.4% year-on-year to 24.8 billion Swiss francs (24.7 billion euros), despite a sharp deceleration in December , the Swiss watchmaking federation announced on Tuesday.
They thus beat their previous record of 2021 when the sector had experienced a very strong rebound after the shock of the pandemic against a backdrop of a very strong recovery in demand for luxury products.
In December, however, they experienced a sharp slowdown, weighed down by China.
During the last month of the year, their growth was limited to 5.8%, i.e. a “
rhythm below the annual average
”, specifies the watchmaking federation in a press release, stressing that they have nevertheless crossed the bar of 2 billion francs in December, “
which had never happened before at this time of year
”.
The fall in exports to China was further accentuated, falling 22.5% in December after falling 11.5% in November and 18.1% in October.
However, they increased in the other major markets with the exception of Hong Kong, climbing 11.5% to the United States, 26.2% to Singapore, 20.4% to Japan and 14.8 % on average to European markets, detailed the watchmaking federation.
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After a fall of 21.8% in 2020 under the shock of the pandemic, Swiss watch exports rebounded by 31.2% in 2021 thanks to demand for luxury goods in the United States and the Gulf countries, before the recovery spreads to Europe in 2022 with the return of tourists who come to shop in London, Paris or Milan.
Last week, the luxury giant Richemont however reported a drop in sales of its watch division over the last three months of 2022 due to the explosion of Covid cases in China which weighed on the attendance of its shops but also on the availability of staff, forcing them to reduce opening hours or temporarily close points of sale.
On Tuesday, the watchmaker Swatch Group also reported