Burberry's shares slide on China slowdown

7th Oct 2013 09:47

Burberry's shares fell after the luxury goods maker's Chief Executive Officer Angela Ahrendts said sales were slowing in China due to a weak market. In an interview with French newspaper Les Echos, the head of the British fashion house said the slowdown in China could lengthen in the luxury goods sector.China's economic growth in 2013 is expected to meet the government's 7.5% target, according to a World Bank forecast on Monday. However, it would represent the slowest pace of expansion in 23 years. "This Chinese slowdown is maybe not a temporary accident but a new normal," Ahrendts told the newspaper."But it's still a huge market in which we doubled our business since we bought our distribution network in the country despite closing half of our stores."She said emerging markets including India, where Burberry has eight shops, and Latin America and Indonesia will become the "new China" in helping to drive growth.The slowdown in Chinese sales, which started last year, prompted the fashion house to issue a profit warning last September. Shares fell 1.60% to 1,602p at 10:07 on Monday. RD