Cartier owner’s earnings sink as sales slump in China

ZURICH: Cartier owner Richemont posted today a 20% drop in net profit for the first half of the year as sales sank in China, whose economic slowdown has hit the luxury sector.

Richemont said its profit after tax reached €1.7 billion in the six-month period ending in September, lower than expected by analysts polled by Swiss news agency AWP.

Global sales fell 1% to €10.1 billion.

Sales from the Asia-Pacific region were down by almost a fifth while all other regions in the world posted “solid growth”, Richemont said in a results statement.

Citing “reduced consumer spending” in China, Richemont said growth in other Asian countries was “more than offset” by a double-digit drop in sales in the world’s second biggest economy.

Last month, French group LVMH, the world’s biggest luxury company whose brands include Louis Vuitton, Dior and Bulgari, reported a 4.4% drop in third-quarter sales.

Gucci owner Kering said its sales sank 15% in the same quarter due to slowing consumer spending in China.