Swiss watch exports jumped 10% to CHF 1.82 billion ($1.84 billion) in September, as orders from the US continued to grow.
Shipments to the US rose 15% year on year to CHF 214.8 million ($217.4 million), making it Switzerland’s largest export market for timepieces for the third month this year, the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry said last week. Exports to China jumped 26% to CHF 162 million ($163.9 million), and those to Japan spiked 31.6% to CHF 146.8 million ($148.5 million).
Of the six core countries the Swiss watch market serves, only Hong Kong saw a drop, with exports falling 4.6% to CHF 196.7 million ($199 million) for the month.
“Swiss watch exports benefited from an additional working day and a favorable base effect in September,” the federation said.
A large share of the growth was driven by higher-value timepieces, the federation noted, with the supply of watches priced over CHF 3,000 ($3,034) going up 17%. Items worth below CHF 200 ($202) declined by 8%, while those in CHF 500 ($506) to CHF 3,000 bracket fell 2.9%. Demand for watches valued between CHF 200 and CHF 500 saw a slight rebound for the second consecutive month, increasing 2.2%.
