PARIS: Surging demand in Asia and especially mainland China helped Birkin handbag maker Hermes post better-than-expected sales growth for the second quarter, in an encouraging signal for some of its major luxury goods rivals.
The industry has so far largely shrugged off any fallout from a Beijing-Washington trade war that could potentially hit consumer sentiment in its two biggest markets, with appetite for branded goods if anything picking among Chinese shoppers.
Hermes - along with Louis Vuitton owner LVMH and Gucci parent Kering, which are also due to report results this week - has been one of the big beneficiaries of this benign backdrop.
The French company, best known for its pricey leather goods and squared silk scarves, said sales for the April to June period grew 14.7% on a reported basis to 1.67 billion euros ($1.87 billion), and were up 12.3% at stable exchange rates.
That marked a pick-up from the 11.6% comparable sales growth a quarter earlier, when several analysts had expected a slightly more muted performance, citing a tougher comparison base.
Revenues expanded at a brisk pace across Asia, accelerating from the quarter before in spite of political protests in Hong Kong, a big regional shopping destination.
Hermes finance chief Eric du Halgouet told reporters the company had to close two of its Hong Kong stores at certain points in June due to the demonstrations, but that the drag on sales was minor.
Chinese shoppers, who makes up more than a third of the luxury goods industry's client base, have been increasingly spending at home rather than overseas, encouraged by government measures such as import tariff cuts.
Hermes said sales in continental China, where it recently revamped its e-commerce site, were particularly strong in the first half of 2019. It has just rebooted its online shopping site in Japan and will extend the overhaul to Singapore and Malaysia this year, du Halgouet said.
Hermes said operating margins for the six months to the end of June would be slightly below the record 34.5% reached in the first half of 2018, dampened by unfavourable exchange rate hedges, used to protect firms against currency swings.
It reports full results for the first half of the year on Sept. 11.
Strong Asian demand buoys sales at Birkin bag maker Hermes
Strong Asian demand buoys sales at Birkin bag maker Hermes
- Hermes has been one of the big beneficiaries of this benign backdrop
International investors driving Saudi venture capital growth as activity rises 38%
RIYADH: International investors accounted for the majority of venture capital participation in Saudi Arabia in 2025, underscoring rising global interest in the Kingdom’s startup ecosystem.
Non-Saudi investors represented 58 percent of total investor participation during the year, while overall participation reached a new high with 194 investors active in the Kingdom’s startups, up 38 percent year on year, according to data from MAGNiTT.
Saudi Arabia closed 2025 as the Middle East and North Africa’s largest venture capital market, accounting for 45 percent of total regional VC funding.
Venture capital investment in the Kingdom reached a record $1.7 billion across 257 transactions, marking all-time highs in both capital deployed and deal volume and widening the gap with other regional markets.
The findings were published in MAGNiTT’s FY 2025 Saudi Arabia Venture Capital Report, released in partnership with SVC, which described 2025 as a milestone year for the Kingdom’s venture ecosystem.
Saudi Arabia also became the most active VC market in the region by deal count for the first time, overtaking the UAE, as transactions rose 45 percent year over year. Since 2018, annual deal volume has expanded nearly fivefold.
“What stood out in 2025 is not just Saudi Arabia’s record capital deployment, but the breadth of growth across stages, the depth of international participation, and early signs of a more complete venture cycle taking shape,” said Philip Bahoshy, CEO of MAGNiTT.
Growth during the year was distributed across funding stages, with non-mega deals rising 101 percent year over year to $1.15 billion, highlighting the strength of the early- and mid-stage pipeline.
Mega rounds also rebounded sharply, increasing 339 percent year on year, reflecting renewed late-stage investor confidence and improved capital availability for scaling companies.
Fintech led sector activity in 2025, raising $506 million across 55 deals. Enterprise software emerged as the second-most active sector, while gaming, transport and logistics, and travel and tourism attracted relatively large deal sizes, pointing to increasing sectoral diversification.
Exit activity also continued to strengthen, with 10 mergers and acquisitions recorded during the year, the highest annual total to date in Saudi Arabia.
Six of those transactions were led by Saudi-based buyers, signaling rising domestic liquidity and a growing corporate appetite for technology-led growth.
