Swiss Watch Rebound Continues, Led by Pricier Models
- Hong Kong market gains for third month, shaking off slump
- Timepieces costing less than 200 francs plummet 18 percent
Cogs are seen through a magnifying glass on an on an ultra-thin mechanical self-winding Skeleton Movement 1200S Piaget luxury wrist watch, a watchmaking unit of Cie. Financiere Richemont SA, at the Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie (SIHH) watch fair in Geneva, Switzerland, on Monday, Jan, 20, 2014. Enthusiasts coveting $50,000 Cartier watches at the Swiss industry's annual fair bumped opening meetings to resolve the three-year-old Syrian civil war out of the lakeside town.
Photographer: Gianluca Colla/BloombergSwiss watch exports climbed for a fourth month in five as growth in higher-end mechanical timepieces made up for a decline in cheaper quartz models.
Shipments rose 3.6 percent to 1.7 billion francs ($1.8 billion) in July, the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry said in statement Tuesday. Exports of watches wholesaling for more than 3,000 francs rose 5.9 percent, offsetting an 18 percent slump in timepieces costing less than 200 francs.