Richemont’s earnings decline sharply due to China sales slump

Cartier owner Richemont posted on Friday a big drop in net profit for the first half of the year as sales sank in China, whose economic slowdown has hit the luxury sector.

Richemont said its profit after tax reached 457 million euros, down from 1.5 billion euros in the same six-month period last year as it booked a 1.2-billion-euro write-down from the sale of its Yoox-Net-A-Porter online fashion business.

Its net profit for continuing operations was 1.7 billion euros ($1.8 billion) in the six months ending in September, 20 percent lower than in 2023 and less than expected by analysts polled by Swiss news agency AWP.

Global sales fell one percent to 10.1 billion euros

Sales from the Asia-Pacific region were down by almost a fifth while all other regions in the world posted "solid growth", Richemont said in a results statement.

Citing "reduced consumer spending" in China, Richemont said growth in other Asian countries was "more than offset" by a double-digit drop in sales in the world's second-biggest economy.

Last month, French group LVMH, the world's biggest luxury company -- whose brands include Louis Vuitton, Dior and Bulgari -- reported a 4.4-percent drop in third-quarter sales.

Gucci owner Kering said its sales sank 15 percent in the same quarter due to slowing consumer spending in China.