Swiss watch exports accelerated strongly in August, growing by 14.7% compared with August 2021 to 1.7 billion francs. Growth, therefore, stands at 11.7% two-thirds of the way through the year.
All materials contributed to this performance, mainly watches made from precious metals (+22.5%). Moreover, performance in the Other materials category more than doubled in a month (+109.1%). It also set the tone in volumes, with an increase of over 170,000 items (+81.0%) compared with August 2021.
The volume increase was driven mainly by watches priced at less than 200 francs (export price), which increased by 35.3%. Conversely, the 200-500 francs category remained sharply negative. Watches priced at over 3,000 francs grew steadily (+20.2% by value) and had a significant impact on performance in the sector. The United States (+23.2%), China (+15.4%) and Japan (+48.3%) recorded robust growth and, between them, accounted for half the increase worldwide. Hong Kong remained in the red (-7.8%) in fourth place, with the United Kingdom hot on its heels (+11.2%). On average, European markets achieved a 10.9% increase. Italy (-4.1%), however, went against the tide, mainly due to an unfavourable base effect.
