The Swiss Watch Industry Employers’ Convention and the Swiss Watch Industry Federation have joined forces in a press release published on Tuesday: they are warning the authorities about the severe turbulence in the sector and are calling for support measures.
Act on the Swiss franc and reduce administrative burdens
This Tuesday, the two major players in the Swiss watch industry are calling for help. The Employers’ Convention and the Federation of the Watch Industry are publishing a joint press release in which they report on a sector in difficulty. The Swiss watch industry has in fact been affected for several months by a slowdown in demand, particularly in China. In figures, from January to July, exports of timepieces fell by 2.4% compared to the same period last year to 15.15 billion francs. In China, the decrease even reached 32.8%.
According to the two organisations, the industry is already suffering serious consequences: partial unemploymentof the extended summer closures and, for some harder-hit businesses, layoffs.
Faced with this worrying situation, the two actors ask the “economic and political authorities” to intervene. They propose very concrete measures, including fight against the strength of the Swiss franc responsible, according to them, for its non-competitiveness: “With inflation well below 2% as it currently stands, the Swiss National Bank has
room for maneuver to act on the foreign exchange market”argue the two organizations in the press release. They also request the reduction of administrative burdens, “in order to allow economic players to concentrate on their core activity and to strengthen their competitiveness on international markets.”
After two years of growth, Swiss watchmakers are suffering from the luxury crisis in China linked to economic uncertainties in the region that have led to a “luxury shame” phenomenon. Difficulties that are also being experienced by other luxury sectors, particularly fashion: recently, the British brand Burberry was downgraded on the London Stock Exchange following a 4% drop in revenue, falling below the £3 billion mark.
