Luxury goods group Hermes reported on Tuesday a near 23-per cent surge in first half sales and doubled its revenue forecast for the year, in an indication the market for high-end products is vibrant.
Sales came to 1.0747 billion euros (S$1.92 billion) in the January-June period, up 22.8 per cent from the figure 12 months earlier, the company said, adding that it now expected sales to grow between 10 and 12 per cent for the full year.
The company had previously predicted a sales increase of 5.0 per cent. The sales spurt was especially sharp in the second quarter, 27 per cent, after a gain of 18.5 per cent in the first.
Analysts polled by Dow Jones Newswires had foreseen increases of 19 per cent in the first and second quarters.
The company said it had benefited in the first half from a weaker euro against the dollar. At constant exchange rates sales rose 20 per cent.
Asia continued to be the sales driver, with first half revenue – apart from Japan – growing by 45 per cent. Sales rose 26 per cent in the Americas and 17 per cent in France.
No comments:
Post a Comment