By Marleen Kaesebier and Isabel Demetz (Reuters) -Swatch's sales fell in the first half of 2025, the company said on Thursday, as the Swiss watchmaker faced continued weakness in China. The maker of
Swatch Sales Decline in First Half of 2025 Due to Weak China Demand
By Marleen Kaesebier and Isabel Demetz
(Reuters) -Swatch's sales fell in the first half of 2025, the company said on Thursday, as the Swiss watchmaker faced continued weakness in China.
The maker of Omega, Longines and Tissot, along with its plastic Swatch watches, said its half-year sales fell 7.1% at constant exchange rates to 3.06 billion Swiss francs ($3.82 billion), compared to a year earlier.
That missed the 3.2 billion francs expected by analysts polled by LSEG.
In its report, Swatch said the sales decline was down to weakness in China and that other regions reached record levels of sales. This included North America, which saw double-digit sales growth.
Swatch shares were seen down 4% in pre-market trading
With 16 brands, the company sells watches ranging in price from under 100 francs to over 40,000 francs.
Swatch does not provide financial updates for the first and third quarters, so Thursday's report marked the first time it had posted results since Trump's tariff announcements.
The company's half year operating profit fell nearly 67% from the same period last year to 68 million Swiss francs.
China, Hong Kong and Macau generated 27% of the Swiss company's full year sales. The group said it expects the market environment in the Greater China region to improve in the second half of the year.
Aside from a weak China, the Swiss watch industry is also coping with a Swiss franc supercharged by Trump's trade policies, making prices less attractive for foreign buyers.
Swatch flagged a negative currency impact of 113 million Swiss francs in its half year results, its net sales having fallen 10.4% at current rates.
($1 = 0.8020 Swiss francs)
(Reporting by Isabel Demetz and Marleen Kaesebier in Gdansk, editing by Milla Nissi-Prussak and Matt Scuffham)
