Swiss watch exports to the US soared final month as US President Donald Trump known as day trip on tariffs, trade figures confirmed on Tuesday.
US-bound shipments soared by 149.2 % in April in comparison with the identical month a yr in the past, in accordance with the Federation of the Swiss Watch trade.
Trump imposed a ten % tariff on imports from world wide in early April however hit dozens of nations with steeper duties, with Swiss items dealing with a 31 % levy.
The US president, nonetheless, paused the upper tariffs till July to offer time for negotiations.
The surge in Swiss watch exports to the US was “mainly the result of early shipments” as increased US tariffs loom, the federation mentioned.
“The sharp rise in exports is therefore more a reflection of a one-off response to an uncertain commercial situation than a genuine sign of a structural strengthening of demand,” it added.
International Swiss watch exports rose by 18.2 % in April to 2.5 billion Swiss francs ($3 billion).
With out the distinctive US shipments, general exports would have fallen by 6.4 % because of a droop in China and Hong Kong, the federation mentioned.
America is by far the primary marketplace for the Swiss watch trade, whose timepieces should be made domestically to earn the “made in Switzerland” label.
Swiss President Karin Keller-Sutter held commerce talks with US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent in Geneva earlier this month.
This story was initially featured on Fortune.com
