SWISS watch exports have increased at the slowest rate for five months in August as growth weakened in Hong Kong, and demand for the most expensive timepieces decelerated.
Exports rose 6.3 percent to 1.1 billion francs (US$1 billion) last month, the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry said yesterday, Bloomberg News reported. Hong Kong imports were up 4.6 percent to 176.5 million francs, down from July's 16 percent pace. High-end timepieces, which Jaeger-LeCoultre maker Cie. Financiere Richemont SA said were the most resistant to a slowdown, slowed to 15 percent growth after gains topped 20 percent for five months.
"The key question is whether August is a blip or we're starting to see the first real signs of a slowing high-end watch market," John Guy, an analyst at MF Global Securities in London, said.
"Events over the past week are likely to have dented confidence even for the most wealthy of individuals."