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Thursday, 31st January 2008 (3124 views)

Sales of gold watches were the main catalyst behind a 16.2 per cent annual increase in Swiss watch exports, according to a national trade association.

The Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry says total watch exports came to 15.96 billion Swiss francs (£7.3 billion) in 2007, with 1.43 billion francs worth of sales in December alone.

Gold watches were among the most in demand items, with sales of 18 ct pieces rising by 24.9 per cent.

More high-end timepieces costing over 3,000 francs, did particularly well, the federation said.

The biggest market for watch exports was the United States, which was worth over 2.44 billion francs. This was follows by Hong Kong, where exports increased by 25 per cent to a total value of 2.43 billion francs.

Other key expansion markets were France, where demand grew by 20.9 per cent to 982.9 million francs and Singapore, where demand increased by 24.3 per cent to 670 million francs.

China saw the biggest increase in demand, however, with a 43 per cent upswing. The market is now worth 577.6 million francs.

The Federation of Swiss Watch Makers is an independent organisation that represents over 90 per cent of Swiss watch manufacturers.

 

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