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In June, exports rose by 11.2% to nearly 2.4 billion Swiss francs, according to the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry. This performance has reduced the cumulative decline since the start of the year to 0.7%, while Swiss watch exports totaled 12.8 billion Swiss francs<\/b> in the first half of the year.<\/p>\n
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The increase observed in June spanned all major watch categories, starting with wristwatches\u2014which account for the bulk of the sector\u2019s activity\u2014and which rose by 11.7%<\/b> to 2.284 billion Swiss francs<\/b>.<\/p>\n
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Timepieces made of precious metals, meanwhile, recorded a 2.9%<\/b> increase, reaching 846.9 million Swiss francs<\/b>, while steel watches rose by 5%<\/b>, reaching 735.9 million Swiss francs<\/b>.<\/p>\n
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However, the strongest performance came from bimetallic models, whose exports surged by 42.1%<\/b> to 453.3 million Swiss francs<\/b>. Watches made from other metals also saw strong growth of 22.9%<\/b>, reaching 150.3 million Swiss francs<\/b>.<\/p>\n
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Watches with an export price between 200 and 500 Swiss francs<\/b> recorded the strongest growth in volume this month, with a 54.1%<\/b> increase, while their value rose by 51.3%<\/b>.<\/p>\n
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The segment of timepieces with an export price exceeding 3,000 Swiss francs<\/b> also continued to grow, with a 14.2%<\/b> increase in volume and a 9.9%<\/b> rise in export value.<\/p>\n
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Conversely, watches with an export price between 500 and 3,000 Swiss francs<\/b> were the only category to decline, with a 4.7%<\/b> drop in volume, despite a 10.6%<\/b> increase in value.<\/p>\n
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The United States<\/b> remains the leading market for Swiss watches, with 349 million Swiss francs<\/b> in exports in June, an increase of 12.7%<\/b>. It now accounts for 14.6%<\/b> of the sector\u2019s exports, up from 14.3% last month.<\/p>\n
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France<\/b> emerged as the second-largest market for the month with 249.6 million Swiss francs<\/b>, a spectacular increase of 103.5%<\/b>. The FH notes, however, that this trend is not very representative of actual demand<\/b> in the French market, suggesting that it stems from one-off factors rather than sustained consumption.<\/p>\n
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The United Kingdom<\/b> grew by 12.2%<\/b> to 175 million Swiss francs<\/b>, ahead of Japan<\/b> (169.4 million<\/b>, +8.8%<\/b>), Hong Kong<\/b> (157.9 million<\/b>, +6.9%<\/b>), and Singapore<\/b> (154.3 million<\/b>, +6.7%<\/b>). These six major markets alone accounted for 1.255 billion Swiss francs<\/b>, or 52.5%<\/b> of Swiss watch exports in June, up 21.1%<\/b> year-over-year.<\/p>\n
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Conversely, several major markets continue to weigh on the sector\u2019s performance: exports to China<\/b>, a market facing persistent difficulties, fell by 16.5%<\/b>; those to Germany<\/b> by 10.6%<\/b>; and those to Italy<\/b> by 21.4%<\/b>.<\/p>\n
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