Luxury group Richemont registered robust jewellery sales in the first fiscal half of 2024, driven by a strong performance in the Asia Pacific region.

The group’s high-end jewellers – Buccellati, Cartier and Van Cleef & Arpels – increased sales by 10 per cent year on year to €6.953 billion (around US$7.559 billion).

Richemont said the growth was primarily driven by the Asia Pacific region, with a 34 per cent sales increase recorded in mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau. This surge can be attributed to the removal of Covid-19 restrictions earlier in the year, coupled with an upswing in tourism across these three markets.

“The strong performance was broad-based across product categories from silverware at Buccellati to high jewellery at the group’s three jewellery maisons,” Richemont said, noting the significant contributions made by its iconic jewellery collections, as well as other creative offerings such as Clash and Grain de Café by Cartier, Fauna and Perlée by Van Cleef & Arpels, and Opera Tulle and Ramage by Buccellati.

“Growth eased in the second quarter as inflationary pressure, slowing economic growth and geopolitical tensions began to affect customer sentiment, compounded by strong comparatives. The positive news is that a soft-landing scenario seems to be prevailing in major economies, with still higher growth expected from China, which should benefit from stimulus measures,” Richemont noted.