Richemont's Asian slowdown offset by Europe Six months ago Richemont argued the luxury slowdown in China had hit a bottom. Its first half results indicate the slowdown continues but the decline was mitigated by strength in the Americas and Europe. The Swiss luxury group reported that overall sales rose 2 per cent to €5.43bn in its first half, in line with estimates at €5.4bn. Demand for jewellery climbed 10 per cent, offsetting declines elsewhere. In Asia-Pacific, which accounted for 38 per cent of total revenue, sales fell 2 per cent. But in Europe and the Middle East - its biggest region, accounting for 39 per cent of revenue - sales were up 6 per cent. In the Americas, sales rose 10 per cent. Under president Xi Jinping's campaign against giving or receiving expensive gifts, purveyors of the high life have seen sales slow precipitously. Richemont, which makes everything from Montblanc pens and Cartier watches to Chloé handbags, said net profit fell 23 per cent in the six month period to €907m, but this was mostly due to a €239m unrealised loss from hedging currencies. The biggest slowdown was once again in Japan, where consumers have retrenched in the wake of an April sales tax increase. Moreover, the weakened yen means sales are diluted once they are repatriated into euros. At constant rates sales in Japan 7 per cent, but at actual exchange rates sales fell 13 per cent. Operating margins fell 1.6 percentage points to 24.1 per cent. Johann Rupert, chairman, called the results "fairly resilient" thanks to efforts to keep costs low. We remain confident that demand for high quality products will continue to grow in the global market.