Moncler's revenues slipped in second quarter, hit by lower tourist spending
For the Moncler brand, sales in Asia slowed compared with the first quarter and were flat, mostly due to softer tourist flows in Japan, the group said. Revenues in the Europe and Middle East region were down 8%, while sales in the Americas remained positive.
Half-year consolidated revenues totalled 1.23 billion euros (1.41 billion dollars), broadly in line with a company-provided consensus.
The first half operating profit declined 13% to 225 million euros, still slightly above analysts expectations, with marketing expenses weighted towards that period.
"Entering the second half of 2025, uncertainty in the global geopolitical and economic landscape remains elevated," Moncler said in a statement. "The group continues to prioritise operational agility, while steadily investing in its organisation, talent, and distinctive brands."
The Stone Island clothing brand is also part of the group. The luxury industry is experiencing a prolonged downturn, which has been compounded by the uncertainty unleashed by U.S. President Donald Trump 's trade war. Luxury heavyweights LVMH and Kering are expected to report another drop in quarterly sales this month.
© Thomson Reuters 2025 All rights reserved.
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Euronews
6 minutes ago
- Euronews
US and China prepare to extend tariff pause after Stockholm talks
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'A stable, healthy and sustainable China-US economic and trade relationship serves not only the two countries' respective development goals but also contributes to global economic growth and stability,' said China's Vice Premier He Lifeng, who led the Chinese side, according to a statement from China's Ministry of Commerce. He did not say how the extension would work. Bessent added that the two sides touched on US concerns over China's purchase of Iranian oil, supply of dual-use tech to Russia that could be used on the battlefield, and the manufacturing of goods at a rate beyond what is sustained by global demand. 'We just need to de-risk with certain, strategic industries, whether it's the rare earths, semiconductors, medicines, and we talked about what we could do together to get into balance within the relationship,' Bessent said. He stressed that the US seeks to restore domestic manufacturing, secure purchase agreements of US agricultural and energy products, and reduce trade deficits. Meeting in the Swedish capital The latest round of talks opened Monday in Stockholm to try to break a logjam over tariffs that have skewed the pivotal commercial ties between the world's two largest economies. The two sides previously met in Geneva and London to address specific issues — triple-digit tariffs that amounted to a trade embargo and export controls on critical products — China's chokehold on rare earth magnets, and US restrictions on semiconductors. Monday's discussions lasted nearly five hours behind closed doors at the office of Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson. Before the talks resumed Tuesday, Kristersson met with Bessent and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer over breakfast. 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Striking tariff deals The US has struck deals over tariffs with some of its key trading partners — including Britain, Japan and the European Union — since Trump announced earlier in July elevated tariff rates against dozens of countries. China remains perhaps the biggest challenge. 'The Chinese have been very pragmatic,' Greer said in comments posted on social media by his office late Monday. 'We have tensions now, but the fact that we are regularly meeting with them to address these issues gives us a good footing for these negotiations.' Many analysts had expected that the Stockholm talks would result in an extension of current tariff levels, which are far lower than the triple-digit percentage rates proposed as the US-China tariff tiff reached a crescendo in April, sending world markets into a temporary tailspin. The two sides deescalated tensions during bilateral talks in Geneva in May and agreed to a 90-day pause on sky-high tariffs — which ends 12 August. The US duties currently stand at 30% on Chinese goods, while China is placing a 10% tariff on US products. The long view While China has offered few specifics of its goals in the Stockholm talks, Bessent has suggested that the situation has stabilised to the point that Beijing and Washington can start looking toward longer-term balance between their economies. Since China vaulted into the global trading system more than two decades ago, Washington has sought to press Beijing to encourage more consumption at home and offer greater market access to foreign, including American-made goods. Wendy Cutler, a former US trade negotiator and now vice president at the Asia Society Policy Institute, said Trump's team would today face challenges from 'a large and confident partner that is more than willing to retaliate against US interests". Rollover of tariff rates 'should be the easy part', she said, warning that Beijing has learned lessons since the first Trump administration and 'will not buy into a one-sided deal this time around". Goodbye Stockholm Bessent said the 'overall tone of the meetings was very constructive" while Li said the two sides agreed in Stockholm to keep close contact and to 'communicate with each other in a timely manner on trade and economic issues". On Monday, police cordoned off a security zone along Stockholm's vast waterfront as curious tourists and locals sought a glimpse of the top-tier officials through a phalanx of TV news cameras lined up behind metal barriers. Flagpoles at the prime minister's office were festooned with the American and Chinese flags.
Euronews
36 minutes ago
- Euronews
Is wind power really a ‘con job'? Fact-checking Trump's latest claims
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Wind alone was responsible for 31 per cent of the increase in Germany's renewable generation, according to think tank Ember.
France 24
36 minutes ago
- France 24
Could copper tariff hurt US more than Chile?
If not, the South American country should be able to easily find other buyers for a metal deemed critical for the artificial intelligence and green energy revolutions, analysts say. Chile is the largest provider of copper to the United States, whose President Donald Trump announced a punishing levy on the metal starting Friday. Government sources in Santiago told AFP delegations have been talking behind closed doors since Monday, seeking a Trump-pleasing deal that will in effect replace a free trade agreement in place since 2004. Impact on the US The United States imports about 45 percent of the copper it needs for industrial use, according to the US Geological Survey, a government agency. Of that, it gets 51 percent from Chile. According to Trump himself, it is "the second most used material by the Department of Defense" -- used in semiconductors, planes, ships, ammunition, data centers and missile defense systems. Trump "wants to revitalize a domestic industry that has faded and has been overtaken by China and has become reliant on foreign imports," Andy Cole, an analyst with the London-based Fastmarkets price-tracking agency, told AFP. Raising the tariff on imported copper will increase US production costs, which may boost demand for domestically sourced copper. But the United States does not have the capacity to increase its production overnight, and "in the long run the losers will be US consumers if they have the pay more for copper," said Cole. Juan Carlos Guajardo, director of Chilean consulting firm Plusmining, said the United States would need to produce between 600,000 and 800,000 tons of copper per year for its domestic industry, and would not be able to reach that level for "at least 10 years." Impact on Chile Chile is responsible for nearly a quarter of global copper supply, which contributes 10 to 15 percent to its GDP. Its Finance Minister Mario Marcel has warned of "medium-term" damage from a 50-percent tariff, but said the country could mitigate longer-term harms through "market diversification." For Guajardo, this means Chile can "redirect its copper," particularly "to Southeast Asia and India" or even Europe. China is by far the leading buyer of Chilean copper, accounting for 52 percent -- totaling $26 billion --in 2024, according to the South American country's central bank. The United States occupied a distant second place with imports worth $5.8 billion from Chile, followed by Japan with $5.3 billion and South Korea with $2.8 billion. According to Maurice Obstfeld, an economics professor at the University of California, Berkeley, "copper importers other than the US could gain" from the tariff hike. Exception? Chile says it has not been officially notified of the August 1 starting date for a copper tariff, and is still hoping to avoid it. The country's foreign ministry has said "confidential" talks with US delegates would continue to the last minute. According to Marcel, copper itself is not formally on the negotiating table, but will likely be included. "For this type of raw material, exceptions have been made in other agreements," he told Radio Duna earlier this week. After Trump's announcement on July 8, the price of copper soared to record levels in New York. US buyers rushed to stockpile the red metal before August 1, paying prices sometimes as much as 30 percent higher than in London.
