Swiss Watch Exports Dipped in March Amid Iran War and High Costs
(Bloomberg) — Swiss watch exports slid in March as the industry faced disruptions in the Middle East and contended with high precious metal costs.
A plunge in sales in Saudi Arabia and Qatar helped push exports down by 1% in March from a year earlier. Still, the total for the first quarter reached 6.2 billion Swiss francs ($7.9 billion), an increase of 1.4% from the same period last year, the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry said Tuesday.
While exports to the United Arab Emirates were largely unperturbed, Saudi Arabia recorded a 16.8% drop and Qatar had an almost 25% decline, both extending a weakening trend that began in January. Analysts warned that the Middle East conflict has yet to show up fully in the aggregate export numbers, noting that local demand already looks fragile.
“In the Middle East, we don’t think March exports are a clean proxy for end-demand, as luxury house sell-out data point to a roughly 50% decline in sales,” Manuel Lang, an analyst at Vontobel said.
In 2025, the Gulf region had been one of the bright spots for watchmakers, touching 2.21 billion francs, with the UAE alone accounting for more than half.
Timepieces made from precious metals saw a 4% drop, which hit the value of exports overall. Steel watches fell 9%.
With gold still hovering around all time highs, many brands including Favre Leuba and H. Moser & Cie said they’ve started turning away from the precious metal.
“The strength of Moser is a lot of value for money,” co-owner of H. Moser & Cie Bertrand Meylan said in an interview at the “Watches and Wonders” fair in Geneva last week. “We try to use it smartly on products that we believe really need gold, but it’s been reduced in our collection.”
Watches priced between 200 and 500 Swiss francs led growth while all other segments saw a slight downturn. That “is likely favorable for Swatch Group, given both price point performance and also China performance,” said Nikolaos Lafioniatis, an analyst at RBC.
Exports to the US, the industry’s largest market, fell 1.6% after a gain in February, confirming an uneven recovery. France’s 72% gain does not reflect market growth, but rather re-exports to other destinations, according to the statement. China gained 4.2%, while Hong Kong remained steady.
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