LVMH Q1 sales miss; France struggles, Asia 'varied'
Rising champagne sales in Europe and demand for high-end perfume and watches help boost sales at LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton by 3.5 percent in the first quarter.
The luxury group, whose broad holdings include Kenzo and Givenchy fashion houses and Dior perfumes, on Monday reported 8.62 billion euros ($9.8 billion) in revenue for the period.
That was up from 8.3 billion euros in the first quarter of 2015, but slightly below an 8.73 billion euros forecast by analysts polled by financial information company FactSet.
While cosmetics and alcohol sales grew — especially U.S. sales of Hennessy cognac — fashion and leather revenue was flat. The company warned that Asian markets are "varied" and the home market France has struggled from a drop in tourism since deadly attacks last year.