Official website of the Swiss watch industry

2000 proved an exceptional year for the Swiss watch industry. For the first time, exports passed the "magic" ten billion Swiss francs mark to reach 10.297 billion. This fantastic result, representing a 14.4% increase on 1999, reflects uninterrupted growth for the past seventeen months. Sustained demand on the major markets, the strength of the dollar against the Swiss franc and the growing fascination of consumers with luxury products enabled all our expectations to be surpassed.



Products

This record result in sales terms was accompanied by a fall in volumes exported in the complete watch sector. Swiss manufacturers exported 29.9 million units, i.e. 4.6% less than in 1999. But the value of these products rose 14.1% to 9.3 billion francs. The fall in volumes affected quartz watches (-5.1%), while sales of traditional mechanical watches were identical in volume terms to 1999. Both product types achieved a gain in value of around 14%.

Steel continued to erode the market shares of other materials and now accounts for more than four out of ten watches exported by Switzerland. In 2000, 12,2 million steel timepieces were sold, i.e. 1 million or 9.2% more than one year previously. After a sluggish year in 1999, exports of 18 carat gold watches regained their sparkle on the markets (+6.9%). Bicolor (gold-steel) products also reported 2.2% higher volumes than in 1999.

The above advances were not strong enough to offset the downturns reported in the lower segments of the market. Consumers' response to plastic and aluminium watches was half-hearted (-15.3%). Gold-plated watches (-2.2%) have been losing ground for several years and were not popular either.

In value terms, growth was generated by the same materials: steel (+18.9%), 18 carat gold (+18.4%) and bicolor (+10.4%). The average price advanced strongly again to 312 francs, against just 261 one year previously.

Turning to other products, Switzerland exported 6.3 million movements (+15.9%) in the year 2000, with a 25.9% increase in value at 126.0 million francs. In the exterior parts segment, the value of exported pieces rose 18.7% against 1999. Sales of clocks, small clocks and their components remained stable, up slightly at 90 million francs.



The markets

The main markets for the Swiss watch industry proved exceptionally dynamic in the year 2000. The United States continued to take the lion's share of Swiss watch products worth nearly 2 billion francs. In Asia, most countries reverted to the level achieved before the 1998 crisis. In Europe, France, Great Britain and Italy led the field.

Swiss watch exports to the fifteen main markets in 2000 (total value in million francs and % variation on 1999) are summarized below :

Swiss watch manufacturers could hardly have imagined a better entry into the third millennium. After a record 2000, they expect 2001 to be a year of consolidation.

February 01, 2001