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US Demand Keeps Swiss Watch Exports Afloat

November 21, 2022  |  Leah Meirovich
Swiss watches credit Shutterstock

Shipments of Swiss watches rose 7% year on year in October amid growing strength in the US market and a boost from Japan and Singapore.

Total exports for the month came to CHF 2.27 billion ($2.37 billion), the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry reported last week.

Supply to the US, the sector’s largest market, grew 17% to CHF 360.2 million ($375.4 million), while orders from Japan climbed 10% to CHF 162.5 million ($169.4 million). Exports to Singapore rose 29% and were up 28% in both Germany and France. Shipments to Australia jumped 44%. Those increases outweighed an 18% drop in supply to China — for a total of CHF 220.1 million ($229.4 million) — and a 6% slip to CHF 163.4 million ($170.3 million) for Hong Kong.

“Many markets continued to perform strongly, while a few larger export destinations saw declines,” the federation noted. “The fall in China had a decisive impact on the overall performance. The declining trend in Hong Kong only served to strengthen the temporary weakening at the global level. At the same time, the US, Japan, Singapore, Germany, France, and Australia, in particular, saw steady growth.”

Watches priced under CHF 500 ($521) experienced a marked decline, falling 26%. Timepieces valued between CHF 500 and CHF 3,000 ($3,128) rose 3.1%, while those priced over CHF 3,000 were in highest demand, up 11%.

In the first 10 months of the year, Swiss watch exports advanced 12% to CHF 20.4 billion ($21.3 million).

Image: A display of Swiss watches. (Shutterstock)

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Swiss watches credit Shutterstock US Demand Keeps Swiss Watch Exports Afloat

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