MC.PA - LVMH Moet Hennessy - Louis Vuitton, Societe Europeenne
| Previous Close | 374.75 |
| Open | 373.90 |
| Bid | 0.00 x 0 |
| Ask | 0.00 x 0 |
| Day's Range | 373.05 - 377.90 |
| 52 Week Range | 242.30 - 392.65 |
| Volume | 515,274 |
| Avg. Volume | 617,676 |
| Market Cap | 188.724B |
| Beta (3Y Monthly) | 1.23 |
| PE Ratio (TTM) | 28.56 |
| EPS (TTM) | 13.13 |
| Earnings Date | Jul 22, 2019 - Jul 26, 2019 |
| Forward Dividend & Yield | 6.20 (1.64%) |
| Ex-Dividend Date | 2019-12-06 |
| 1y Target Est | 319.92 |
- Benzinga
Report: Rising Number Of Working Women Fuels Growth In Designer Handbags
The luxury market is forecast to grow rapidly despite the U.S. trade representative's recent announcement of a list of $7.5 billion in tariffs on European products that take effect Friday. Earlier this ...
- Financial Times
FirstFT: Today’s top stories
The country’s trade war with the US, slowing income growth and cooling manufacturing investment took a toll on the world’s second-largest economy between July and September, according to the figures released by the National Bureau of Statistics on Friday.
- MarketWatch
Trump bashes Pelosi, Democrats during Texas rally
President Donald Trump unleashed a scathing screed against Democrats at a rally in Texas Thursday, bashing his opponents as “crazy” as they push forward on an impeachment inquiry.
- Bloomberg
Energy Chief Perry Tells Trump He Plans to Leave Post This Year
(Bloomberg) -- Energy Secretary Rick Perry notified President Donald Trump on Thursday that he’ll leave the post this year.Perry, one of the administration’s original cabinet secretaries, enjoyed good rapport with Trump. The former Texas governor has recently come under scrutiny in the House impeachment inquiry over his discussions with Ukraine.In a letter, Perry told the president that Americans would benefit from his policies for “years to come.” He went on to say: “Please accept this letter as my official notification that I plan to resign at a date later this year.”Trump praised Perry during a trip to Texas on Thursday and said a replacement would be announced soon. “It’s a man that we’re going to be putting in Rick’s place,” without elaborating.Perry had been planning his departure from the agency well before the Ukraine controversy became the subject of an impeachment query in the House.Perry had avoided the missteps that led to the downfall and exit of other cabinet members including Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt and Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke.But as the impeachment investigation into White House interactions with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has expanded, some of that good will seemed to disappear. Trump earlier this month blamed Perry for the July 25 call with Zelenskiy that led to the whistle-blower complaint that spurred the probe, telling Republican lawmakers it was his energy secretary’s idea.The House is investigating allegations Trump on the call pressured Zelenskiy to investigate Democrat Joe Biden and his son, Hunter, for activities in Ukraine.Perry has met at least three times with Zelenskiy, including in May when he led a delegation to Ukraine’s presidential inauguration in place of Vice President Mike Pence. That trip was referenced in the whistle-blower complaint that sparked the House’s swift-moving impeachment inquiry.House Democrats this month issued a subpoena for Perry, demanding more details about the trip, the phone call, and if Perry attempted to make changes to the board of state-owned utility Naftogaz. Those documents are due Oct. 18, according to the subpoena.Perry told the Wall Street Journal in an interview published Wednesday that he called Trump’s personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, earlier this year at the president’s direction to address concerns about Ukrainian corruption. Those remarks seen by some as cavalier and not helpful to Trump’s cause.Perry, 69, has led the agency he once vowed to eliminate since March 2017, and has told friends he’d like to make money in the private sector before retiring.For months, Perry has been clearing the way for his likely successor, Deputy Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette, according to a person familiar with the matter. Brouillette has taken a bigger role in some department policy matters, such as natural gas exports, and he has more frequently served as the public face of the agency, including on diplomatic missions to tout American energy to foreign allies.Brouillette would likely fill the role of secretary on an acting basis after Perry’s departure, regardless. Although Brouillette is widely expected to be nominated for the post, other possibilities discussed in Washington include Nuclear Regulatory Commission Chairwoman Kristine Svinicki and Neil Chatterjee, chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.However, Chatterjee on Thursday told reporters he plans to stay at FERC through the remainder of his term, which ends in June 2021 and has “never expressed interest in being DOE secretary.”Several key Perry aides also recently departed as the secretary prepares to leave.During his tenure at the department, which has an annual budget of about $30 billion and a mission that ranges from safeguarding nuclear weapons to maintaining the emergency oil reserve, Perry pressed unsuccessfully for a government rescue of unprofitable coal and nuclear plants.\--With assistance from Stephen Cunningham, Justin Sink and Jennifer A. Dlouhy.To contact the reporters on this story: Jennifer Jacobs in Washington at jjacobs68@bloomberg.net;Jenny Leonard in Washington at jleonard67@bloomberg.net;Ari Natter in Washington at anatter5@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Jon Morgan at jmorgan97@bloomberg.net, Justin Blum, John HarneyFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
- MarketWatch
Trump calls Turkey’s Syria cease-fire an ‘amazing outcome’
President Donald Trump hailed a five-day cease-fire in northern Syria announced by Vice President Mike Pence, even as Turkey disputed the term and said a pause in Ankara’s military operations depended on Kurdish forces leaving a safe zone.
- Bloomberg
Europe Scrambles to Avert Brexit Agony for World Economy
(Bloomberg) -- Want to receive this post in your inbox every day? Sign up for the Terms of Trade newsletter, and follow Bloomberg Economics on Twitter for more.To understand how Brexit threatens to morph quickly from a European political firestorm into a global trade headache, consider a line from the Federal Reserve’s Beige Book this week. “A Virginia manufacturer reported looking for new suppliers over concerns about the possible effects of Brexit,” the report stated.Sounds isolated enough until you consider how interwoven the British economy is not just with the European Union but with the U.S. and beyond. Uncertainty stemming mostly from the U.S.-China trade war may spread. The potential disruptions help explain why EU and U.K. negotiators scrambled to reach a withdrawal deal, subject to the U.K. Parliament’s approval on Saturday, ahead of a European summit Thursday and Friday in Brussels.Hardcore Brexit supporters insist the U.K. could rely on the basic World Trade Organization rule book to keep international commerce flowing should the country leave the bloc without a transition agreement. They are only half right.While the WTO forces each member nation to treat all others equally when it comes to trading rights, including tariff levels, a no-deal Brexit on Oct. 31 would mean overnight cost increases for British and EU importers of everything from cars to jackets.The reason: The point of departure for both sides is the current total absence of border taxes in the European single market, which accounts for around half of overall U.K. trade.Because a hard Brexit would subject Britain to EU import duties already imposed on the rest of the world, the U.K. government plans to replicate a number of those levies to ensure British producers have a level playing field with competitors based in the bloc.So, for example, an existing EU tariff of 10% on foreign autos would also become the U.K. levy on imported vehicles. Ditto on men’s woolen jackets and blazers, which would face a 12% import duty in Britain and in the EU. The U.K. would also replicate the EU tariff regime for sheep meat, which faces an import levy of 12.8% plus 129 euros ($144) per 100 kilograms once a duty-free quota allotted to foreign suppliers is exhausted. Not so for another kind of food: blue-veined cheeses. While the EU duty in this case is 140.9 euros per 100 kilograms, Britain plans a significantly lower import levy of 18.6 euros per 100 kilograms. Still, for U.K. buyers of blue-veined cheeses made in EU countries such as France, the British tariff would still represent a cost increase versus the status quo.For goods that it largely imports rather than produces, Britain plans no tariffs.Oranges are an example. While a no-deal Brexit would subject the U.K. to a 12% EU levy on oranges, the British government intends to allow duty-free imports of the fruit. In the generally bleak no-deal Brexit scenario, that’s a bit of good news for Spain — the EU’s biggest orange producer.Charting the Trade WarFailure to strike an agreement at a summit this week would plunge the U.K.’s divorce from the EU back into chaos. In total, about 0.9% of global GDP is exposed to Brexit trade risk, according to Bloomberg Economics. No surprise, the U.K. is the most vulnerable major economy, with 10% of GDP at risk. Ireland isn’t far behind, at 9.7 %. For the euro area as a whole, 2.7 % of GDP is exposed.Today’s Must ReadsText me | Chinese officials working on the text of an agreement on trade are in close contact with U.S. negotiators, an official in Beijing said. Lap of luxury | President Donald Trump and his daughter Ivanka are set to open a new Louis Vuitton factory with a ribbon-cutting ceremony in Texas. Getting closer | At a time when trade relations are worsening and diplomatic rows proliferating, India and Indonesia seem to be fostering closer ties. Betting on yuan | Investors should think twice before betting against a stronger China’s currency, according to the most accurate yuan forecaster. Stephanomics podcast | Stephanie Flanders talks with Nobel Prize-winning economist Michael Kremer about how his work has transformed the way we tackle global poverty.Economic AnalysisDraghi’s plea | Fiscal policy should become Europe’s main instrument to stimulate demand. Pigging out | U.S. could sell $50 billion worth of pork, corn and ethanol to China.Coming UpOct. 18-20: IMF’s annual meetings in Washington Oct. 21: Japan and South Korea trade data Oct. 25: CPB releases Global Trade MonitorLike Terms of Trade?Don’t keep it to yourself. Colleagues and friends can sign up here. We also publish Balance of Power, a daily briefing on the latest in global politics.For even more: Subscribe to Bloomberg All Access for full global news coverage and two in-depth daily newsletters, The Bloomberg Open and The Bloomberg Close.How are we doing? We want to hear what you think about this newsletter. Let our trade tsar know.To contact the author of this story: Jonathan Stearns in Brussels at jstearns2@bloomberg.netTo contact the editor responsible for this story: Brendan Murray at brmurray@bloomberg.net, Brian SwintZoe SchneeweissFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
- Bloomberg
Hugo Boss Can't Compete When Luxury Is All About Handbags
(Bloomberg Opinion) -- Just 24 hours after LVMH reported knockout sales growth, Hugo Boss AG has provided a sober reminder that the luxury sector’s spoils will not be spread evenly.The maker of smart suits on Thursday issued a warning on full-year sales and profits, the second time it’s pared its outlook in two months, blaming the problems in Hong Kong and ongoing weakness in the U.S. The shares fell as much as 14% to the lowest level in nine years.Chief Executive Officer Mark Langer made a mistake by being too optimistic about the outlook. What’s far less clear now is whether his plan of boosting online sales, focusing on a slimmed-down portfolio of brands and embracing faster fashion is enough to weather the shocks on the horizon on top of the enduring shift toward casual office attire.Hugo Boss gets just 2-3% of its sales from Hong Kong, compared with about 6-7% in China, so it should have been more cushioned. But it struggled to offset a 50% plunge in third-quarter sales in Hong Kong, which remains a popular shopping destination for mainland Chinese. By contrast, LVMH said its Hong Kong sales fell 40% in August and September, but much of that was recouped elsewhere.Workwear, unlike handbags, isn’t the sort of thing you naturally buy on your holidays, so lost sales of suits, say because stores are closed, are less likely to be transferred to another shopping location.That highlights one of Boss’s two big weaknesses: It generates 90% of its sales from clothing. These are proving more vulnerable than leather goods, which remain highly desirable, particularly for middle class and younger Chinese consumers.The other is that Boss also operates in the upper premium segment of the market, rather than super-luxury part. The very wealthy tend to be more resilient spenders than the merely comfortably off who have greater cause to fear political and economic uncertainty. Hugo Boss’s professional customers are more likely to fret about instability, which seems to be popping up everywhere, as well as the possibility of a U.S downturn next year.Boss blamed its last downgrade to forecasts, in early August, on problems in the U.S. It generates about 15% of its sales in that market, where it has been hurt by heavy discounting by rivals and fewer tourists, given the strength of the dollar. With U.S. consumer confidence posting the biggest drop since the start of the year in September, that doesn’t bode well for a quick recovery in this crucial market.All this raises serious questions about the ambitious targets that Langer set less than a year ago. Expanding sales growth from 4% in 2018 to 5-7% by 2022 always looked ambitious. Now the trajectory looks even more challenging, given that the company’s new forecast is for sales growth in the low single digits in 2019. Lifting the margin to 15% of earnings before interest and tax looks equally unrealistic. Analysts at RBC estimate the EBIT margin at 11.7% in 2019.The shares have fallen 37% over the past year, and trade on a forward price-earnings ratio of just 10 times, about half the other clothing-focused luxury groups, indicating that investors have little faith in the group meeting its medium-term goals.Langer’s strategy of moving to just two brands – Boss, catering to core customers, and Hugo for the younger crowd – looks sensible. Bolstering online sales, getting the latest looks into stores more quickly and increasing personalization are logical moves, too. But all of this is increasingly being undermined by weak markets and consumers continuing to turn off clothing.Like an ill-fitting suit, Langer’s aspirations need some careful alterations.To contact the author of this story: Andrea Felsted at afelsted@bloomberg.netTo contact the editor responsible for this story: Melissa Pozsgay at mpozsgay@bloomberg.netThis column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.Andrea Felsted is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering the consumer and retail industries. She previously worked at the Financial Times.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com/opinion©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
- Bloomberg
LVMH’s Faster-Than-Forecast Growth Allays Hong Kong Concerns
(Bloomberg) -- LVMH’s sales of luxury goods to key Chinese consumers have kept growing rapidly despite a slump in the Hong Kong shopping hub caused by anti-Beijing protests.The owner of Louis Vuitton and Christian Dior threw down a gauntlet to rivals with 19% third-quarter revenue growth in fashion and leather goods. Analysts had predicted a 15% gain on a comparable basis.LVMH shares rose as much as 5.5% in Paris on Thursday, the most since January, and they’re up 45% this year. Gucci owner Kering SA and Cartier parent Richemont posted smaller gains.The luxury leader’s strong performance allays some concerns about the effects of the Hong Kong disruptions, showing that the Chinese demand that is increasingly driving growth in the industry remains robust. The demonstrations against the tightening grip of China’s government in the city have curbed travel to Hong Kong by mainland consumers, but they’re still splashing out on high-end fashions elsewhere.“We believe that the bulk of the Hong Kong weakness has been compensated in other markets,” Citi analyst Thomas Chauvet said in a note. “This sets the bar pretty high for peers.”Total sales at the luxury conglomerate, which also makes Dom Perignon Champagne and owns cosmetics retailer Sephora, rose 11% to 13.3 billion euros ($14.6 billion), beating the 9% consensus estimate.The overall gain masked weakness in Hong Kong, where August and September sales fell 40%, Chief Financial Officer Jean-Jacques Guiony said on a call Thursday, a day after the company’s report. While that will hurt LVMH’s profitability this year because of high fixed costs in the city, the company is confident business will recover eventually, he said.“It’s out of the question that we would consider that Hong Kong will not be a strong business center in the years to come,” he said.Elsewhere, the company is getting a boost from changes at its biggest labels. Christian Dior Couture has accelerated since the arrival of a new menswear chief, Kim Jones. The brand has reissued men’s versions of bestselling Dior products for women like Saddle bags and Bar suits.Menswear RevampLouis Vuitton, the company’s largest and most profitable brand, is raking in the buzz from increased online marketing spending. The label has also revamped its menswear under designer Virgil Abloh, known for his streetwear brand Off-White and work as a creative consultant to Kanye West.Forecasts for the luxury giant’s growth were tempered as LVMH boutiques in Hong Kong became a backdrop for protests that spilled from the city’s streets to its airport and shopping malls. About 6% of the company’s sales were registered in Hong Kong dollars during the first half of the year, according to an interim financial report.The protests have slammed a tourism industry that used to thrive on visits from mainland China, raising questions on the future of Hong Kong as a luxury hub. Hong Kong’s retail sales by value plunged a record 23% in August from a year earlier as demand for luxury goods such as jewelry and watches plummeted.Mainland Chinese have been doing more of their shopping close to home as Beijing cut import duties, bringing down local prices, and cracked down on the widespread practice of returning home from overseas with undeclared purchases.The protests are expected to speed up that trend. Still, analysts anticipate that most luxury brands will make up only around half of their lost Hong Kong sales elsewhere.(Updates with CFO comments in seventh and eighth paragraphs)\--With assistance from Gregor Stuart Hunter.To contact the reporter on this story: Robert Williams in Paris at rwilliams323@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Eric Pfanner at epfanner1@bloomberg.net, Anne PollakFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
- Barrons.com
LVMH Climbs as Luxury Goods Giant Defies Hong Kong Protests With Sales Beat
Luxury goods giant LVMH reported better-than-expected sales growth in the third quarter despite ongoing protests in Hong Kong and global trade tensions.
- MarketWatch
U.S.-China trade talks ice movement in European stocks
European stocks struggled for direction on Thursday ahead of high level talks between U.S. and Chinese negotiators as the impact of the trade war hit one major exporter.
- Bloomberg
Christian Dior's Book Bags Are Red Hot Right Now
(Bloomberg Opinion) -- Despite the pressures piling onto the luxury industry, LVMH has pulled a great performance out of its roomy monogrammed bag.Sales excluding currency movements rose by 11% in the three months to Sept. 30, better than the consensus of analysts’ forecasts of 9.2%. That’s creditable given the ongoing disruption in Hong Kong.Don’t be lulled into a false sense of security, though. LVMH is the world’s biggest luxury group, with a broad geographic reach and a portfolio spanning fashion to spirits. Not all of the sales reports from high-end sellers in the coming weeks will be as alluring.Purveyors of bling have enjoyed more than three years of frantic growth, driven primarily by Chinese consumers, who account for about a third of sales and have snapped up Christian Dior book bags and Balenciaga sneakers. Some slowdown was inevitable. Despite the reassurance from LVMH, the risk of a hard landing, rather than a gentle deceleration, is rising.LVMH’s fashion and leather goods sales growth of 19% was much stronger than the consensus for a 15% expansion. That indicates that many purchases that would have been made in Hong Kong were diverted to the mainland, or to other Asian shopping destinations. The group has about 1,340 stores across Asia excluding Japan, so it can pick up sales wherever they are made. It helps that the Christian Dior brand is red hot right now, too. Even so, Bernstein forecasts that the protests will shave 0.6-1.2 percentage points off of the entire industry’s growth rate this year, so that expansion will be a figure in the mid-single digits.That’s not disastrous. But Hong Kong isn’t the only cloud on the high-end horizon. Trade tensions between the U.S. and China continue to simmer. So far, consumers appear to be adapting to the new reality. But some data points are more worrying. For example, Chinese consumer confidence slipped in July. Analysts at Citigroup have also noted the potential for Japanese sales to be hurt by the recent increase in the country’s consumption tax from 8% to 10%.And it is not just Asia that luxury-goods groups have to fret about.In general, consumers are more willing to splurge on things they can’t really afford, or don’t really need, when they’re feeling confident and flush with cash. With political turmoil on both sides of the Atlantic, and concerns mounting about economic growth, that’s unlikely to be the case. LVMH said it made “good progress” in the U.S. But increasing fears of a downturn next year will do nothing to encourage spending there.Like LVMH, Kering SA also has a broad reach, but it’s navigating Gucci’s transition from stellar to steady growth. Conditions are not ideal for those groups trying to revive their performances, such as Prada SpA and Salvatore Ferragamo SpA, although there are signs that Burberry Group Plc is gaining momentum with young Chinese shoppers.There’s another reason why the pain might not be spread evenly. With fat margins, and little debt, the biggest groups have plenty of scope to invest. If they keep up capital expenditure when times are tough, they can emerge even stronger. Louis Vuitton designing clothing for characters in the popular fantasy game League of Legends is a case in point. As all of the industry’s growth is coming from the under 40s, investments that appeal to the cool kids are wise. The big groups also have the balance-sheet firepower to make acquisitions.Share prices have been hurt since mid-September by the escalation of protests in Hong Kong. Even so, the Bloomberg Intelligence top luxury peer group trades on a forward price-earnings ratio of about 22 times. That’s a decline to be sure, but it’s not that far off the peak of about 27 in June 2018.Bernard Arnault, chairman of LVMH, has bemoaned high valuations as a barrier to deals. There may still be some way to go until prices are more palatable. But if nascent industry woes become more pronounced, he may finally get his chance to swoop. \--With assistance from Nisha Gopalan.To contact the author of this story: Andrea Felsted at afelsted@bloomberg.netTo contact the editor responsible for this story: Melissa Pozsgay at mpozsgay@bloomberg.netThis column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.Andrea Felsted is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering the consumer and retail industries. She previously worked at the Financial Times.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com/opinion©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
- Reuters
LVMH eases fears over Hong Kong hit, lifting luxury stocks
Shares in LVMH rose on Thursday, lifting other European luxury goods stocks as the Louis Vuitton owner's stronger-than-expected sales update eased fears of any major fallout from protests in Hong Kong on high-end brands. Luxury labels rely on Hong Kong as a magnet for travellers and shoppers across Asia. Helped by booming sales in its fashion and handbag division - home to Vuitton as well as the Christian Dior brand - LVMH shrugged off much of the hit from Hong Kong, with a strong performance in the rest of Asia, Europe and the United States.
- Reuters
LVMH eases luxury sector fears of major Hong Kong hit
A strong sales update from LVMH boosted stocks across the luxury goods sector on Thursday, as months of unrest in Hong Kong proved less of a drag on the Louis Vuitton owner in the third quarter than expected. Luxury labels rely on Hong Kong as a magnet for travelers and shoppers across Asia, and several months of pro-democracy protests have forced some retailers to close their doors temporarily. In the first real glimpse of the impact across the sector, LVMH said revenues were down roughly 25% in the July to September period in Hong Kong.
- Financial Times
LVMH/luxury sector: sumptuous sales
Only with luxury goods can one make luxury margins. Hard work has protected LVMH during a year of tumult in Hong Kong and China. LVMH’s better than expected third-quarter post-market close update on Wednesday led to a share price bounce the next day. Like its Louis Vuitton bags, LVMH’s shares are highly valued. It is worth asking whether they can retain that premium.
- Reuters
UPDATE 1-LVMH shrugs off Hong Kong pain with Vuitton sales boom
Louis Vuitton owner LVMH beat sales forecasts for the third quarter despite unrest in Hong Kong that has forced luxury goods labels to shut stores, in an encouraging sign for rivals who might also be able to make up for the lost business elsewhere. High-end brands have long relied on Hong Kong as a major shopping hub which draws visitors from mainland China in particular, and four months of pro-democracy demonstrations are starting to take their toll. France's LVMH, behind fashion brands like Christian Dior as well as Veuve Cliquot champagne, did not give details of the sales hit from the protests in an update late on Wednesday.
- Reuters
Vuitton owner LVMH shrugs off Hong Kong hit with Q3 sales beat
Louis Vuitton owner LVMH on Wednesday reported higher-than-expected revenue growth for the third quarter, in spite of months of unrest in Hong Kong that have put off tourists and forced luxury goods labels to shut stores. The French group - which owns fashion brands like Christian Dior as well as champagne labels like Veuve Cliquot - said sales were up 17% to 13.3 billion euros ($14.60 billion) in the July to September period. Analysts had expected LVMH to post comparable sales growth of closer to 9%, even as it made up for lost sales in Hong Kong with strong sales in mainland China and other markets.
- GlobeNewswire
LVMH: 16% revenue growth in the first nine months of 2019
Paris, October 9, 2019 LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, the world’s leading luxury products group, recorded a 16% increase in revenue, reaching € 38.4 billion in the first.
- Financial Times
LVMH sales jump 11% despite Hong Kong protests
LVMH posted double-digit revenue growth in the third quarter as the world’s largest luxury group shrugged off the global trade war. The owner of Dior, Moët & Chandon and Bulgari said that sales grew 11 per cent year-on-year on an organic basis to reach €13.3bn. LVMH said Europe and the US made “good progress” during the three months, while Asia also performed well “despite a difficult context in Hong Kong”.
- Financial Times
China ecommerce rules force personal shoppers to be creative
In a market that accounts for two-fifths of the world’s online transactions, and where the sale of counterfeit goods online is rife, China’s first ecommerce law was a long time coming. Daigou — which translates as “to buy on behalf” — have long operated in a grey area of China’s economy. There are about 1m of these shoppers operating globally, according to some estimates, procuring discounted goods for clients, many of whom are also eager to avoid falling victim to the counterfeit luxury market that is so prolific on the mainland.
- Simply Wall St.
You Have To Love LVMH Moët Hennessy - Louis Vuitton, Société Européenne's (EPA:MC) Dividend
Is LVMH Moët Hennessy - Louis Vuitton, Société Européenne (EPA:MC) a good dividend stock? How can we tell? Dividend...
- Bloomberg
Do Your Gucci Loafers Make You Feel Ashamed?
(Bloomberg Opinion) -- “Flygskam” (or flight shame) has made some people too embarrassed to fly because of the damage to the planet. Might fashion be the next business to suffer as consumers put on their environmental hair shirts?Bernard Arnault, chairman of luxury behemoth LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE, has criticized the 16-year-old climate activist Greta Thunberg as being “demoralizing for young people.” She’s probably a bit of a downer for him too.Arnault’s business depends on shoppers, especially young ones, buying lots of unnecessary stuff, from Christian Dior saddlebags to expensive lipsticks from the pop star Rihanna’s Fenty range. Fretting about an impending environmental catastrophe, and worrying that your purchases are contributing to it, is hardly conducive to a spot of retail therapy.The clothing and footwear industries (of which luxury is only a part) contribute about 8% of global C02 emissions, according to Quantis, an environmental consultancy. The Ellen MacArthur foundation, a non-profit organization, estimates that the textiles business generated more greenhouse gas emissions in 2015 than all international flights and shipping combined. There’s plenty here to infuriate Thunberg.Reliable data on the luxury industry’s environmental performance isn’t easy to come by, but one group (made up of Global Fashion Agenda, an industry forum, the Sustainable Apparel Coalition and the Boston Consulting Group) has had a go at creating at a scorecard. This “Pulse Score” is based on elements such as the ecological smartness of product design, raw material use and manufacturing processes. Getting 100 would be perfection on sustainability; nobody comes close to that.Overall, fashion had a pretty underwhelming score of 42 out of 100, although the big luxury companies scored a slightly more respectable 54. While this isn’t exactly cause to celebrate, it does show that the financial clout of LVMH — and its big peers such as Gucci-owning Kering SA and Switzerland’s Compagnie Financiere Richemont SA (home to Cartier) — might be an advantage when it comes to trying to mitigate their impact on the planet and its resources.Yet one can’t ignore the scale of that industry impact. The luxury goods makers have enjoyed more than three years of blockbuster growth, driven largely by Chinese shoppers, meaning they’re gobbling up more natural resources than ever. And as the chart below shows, the natural materials favored by the fashionable elite have the worst effect on the environment (silk is a particular disaster). None of this is helped by the wasteful practices of many shoppers, who move on quickly to the next hot design, or indeed some of the companies. Britain’s Burberry Group Plc came under justified fire last year for its now abandoned practice of destroying unsold stock to prevent it being sold off cheaply.Kering, founded by Arnault’s great rival Francois Pinault, does at least try to be transparent about the damage it does. It publishes an environmental profit and loss account, which put the cost of its impact on the planet in 2018 at about 500 million euros ($549 million). It estimates that about three-quarters of this came from raw materials processing and production. Still, while it’s honest of them to publish these data, the harm is still being done.LVMH has kept a lower profile, though it does perform well on one measure. Morgan Stanley analysts say that the more a luxury company does its own manufacturing, the better it performs on environmental, social and governance targets. That’s because some of the worst industry practices happen in the supply chain away from the direct control — and responsibility — of the parent. The LVMH brands rank well on this measure, according to the Morgan Stanley research. Three of its brands (Loro Piana, Louis Vuitton and Christian Dior) do most of their own manufacturing.As Arnault’s attack on Thunberg highlighted, there’s a reason why these companies are trying to mend their ways: younger shoppers, including Chinese ones, are demanding it. In 2018 all of the industry’s growth came from the under-40s, according to consultants at Bain & Company. Those consumers are more likely to be loyal to brands with a conscience. Yet no matter how much attention the industry pays to the planet, this business is still about getting people to spend money on stuff they could live without. If the rich can be shamed into giving up their far-flung holidays, what does the future hold for Gucci’s diamond belt?\--With assistance from Elaine He and Lara Williams.To contact the author of this story: Andrea Felsted at afelsted@bloomberg.netTo contact the editor responsible for this story: James Boxell at jboxell@bloomberg.netThis column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.Andrea Felsted is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering the consumer and retail industries. She previously worked at the Financial Times.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com/opinion©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
- Reuters
UPDATE 2-Weak U.S., euro zone data push European shares lower
European shares ended a three-day winning streak on Tuesday as investors were gripped by growth worries after poor U.S. manufacturing data fanned fears of slowing growth in the world's largest economy. The pan-European STOXX 600 index touched session lows, and closed down 1.3% after data showed U.S. manufacturing contracted for the second month in September, knocking U.S. stocks. This followed on from euro zone data that showed manufacturing activity contracting at its steepest rate in almost seven years.
- Barrons.com
How Cartier’s Parent Is Losing Some of Its Sparkle
Due to its product mix and exposure to Asia, Richemont is likely to suffer more than most from disruption in Hong Kong and depreciation of the Chinese yuan.
