Swiss watches exports to China plummet in April

On Tuesday, the Swiss watch-makers association announced that the country’s watches exports to China plummeted in April, owing to the Chinese government’s zero-Covid policy, which has slowed down growth in the hitherto booming sector.

In April, exports to China, one of the largest markets for Swiss watch manufacturers, fell by 57.8%, according to the association's figures.

Swiss watches exports continued instead to grow at a healthy rate in the USA, where they increased by 37% in April, having posted a 31.8% rise the previous month.

They were up by 18.2% in Japan and by 29.7% in Singapore, and continued to grow in Europe, where they recorded a 16% rise.

A positive trend that is well-established in the major markets that were hit hard by the absence of tourists during the pandemic, as exports increased by 21.2% in the UK, 48.6% in France and 25.5% in Italy.

Despite the “Chinese market’s slowdown,” the association said in a press release, “global growth remains sustained.”

In April, the value of Swiss watch exports worldwide was CHF1.9 billion (€1.8 billion), equivalent to a 7.3% increase over April last year. A result that was however weaker than the 24% growth recorded in February, and the 11.8% one recorded in March.

China is one of the Swiss watch-making industry’s largest markets. In 2020, China had been the only growth region as watch exports to the rest of the world tumbled, due to the economic impact of the pandemic. They had then continued to increase in China in 2021, when the sector had started to recover.

Zurich, May 31 2022 (AFP)