(Repeats story to add company RIC) PARIS, April 14 (Reuters) – LVMH, the world’s largest luxury group, said on Monday sales fell 3% over the first quarter, missing expectations and confirming a sector slowdown as shoppers held back on purchases of designer fashion in a choppy economic environment. The French company behind high-end labels including fashion houses Louis Vuitton and Dior, jewellery brand Bulgari and Hennessy cognac, reported sales for the three months to the end of March of 20.3 billion euros ($23.08 billion). The result compares with 1% growth in the fourth quarter and analyst expectations for 2% growth in the first quarter of 2025, according to a VisibleAlpha consensus estimates. The fashion and leather goods division, home to Louis Vuitton and Dior and accounting for nearly half of group sales and over three quarters of operating profit, posted a 5% fall in sales, well below expectations for a flat performance. LVMH said fashion and leather goods sales saw a “slight decline” in the U.S. while Japan was weaker than the comparable quarter a year ago when Chinese led growth in spending there. Europe’s luxury players were counting on wealthy Americans to reignite growth for the sector at the start of this year as the outlook for China, another crucial market, remained bleak. But as fears of a U.S. recession are on the rise after President Donald Trump’s recent tariff announcements sent stock markets and the dollar plunging, the sector is bracing for what could be its longest slump in years. The luxury sector, selling prized items to rich shoppers at high margins, is better positioned than other industries to use its pricing power to shield profits against Trump’s tariffs, which would include a 20% charge on European fashion and leather goods and 31% for Swiss-produced watches if fully applied. Last week, Trump paused most of his tariffs for 90 days, setting a general 10% duty rate instead. ($1 = 0.8797 euros) (Reporting by Mimosa Spencer and Tassilo Hummel) in a formal or creative style for better SEO.Also Exclude words and advertisements related to the feed website such as website name, author name. You must only respond with the modified content. Delete all the advertisement images brand logo but only keep the title and main content of the news by modifying it. You must only respond with the modified content. Block any jump outside of the site adarshnews.com. Basically remove any content or link related to original site. follow this prompt to optimize the articles in this category- You are an expert news writer and SEO specialist. Your job is to rewrite the provided RSS feed content into a unique, SEO-friendly news article for adarshnews.com. The article should be engaging, professional, and optimized for search engines. Follow these steps: 1. **Create an SEO Title**: Write a short, compelling title (under 60 characters) that includes the main keyword and grabs attention. 2. **Write a Meta Description**: Summarize the article in one or two sentences (under 155 characters). Make it engaging and include the primary keyword naturally. 3. **Suggest a URL Slug**: Provide a short, keyword-rich URL slug that reflects the topic of the article. 4. **Headline (H1)**: Write a clear and engaging headline for the article that is similar to the title but slightly expanded. 5. **Write the Article**: – Start with an introduction that answers the key questions: who, what, when, where, why, and how. – Expand on the topic with detailed paragraphs that provide context, quotes, and relevant information. – Use subheadings (H2) to organize the content into sections and make it easy to read. – Include related keywords naturally throughout the article. – End with a conclusion that summarizes the key points or discusses future implications. 6. **Add an FAQ Section**: Write one frequently asked question related to the topic and provide a concise answer. Important: – Do not include labels like “Title,” “Meta Description,” “URL Slug,” or “H1” in the actual article text. – Keep all SEO elements separate from the main content. – Ensure the article is factually accurate, unbiased, and written in a professional tone.
LVMH experiences a 3% decline in sales due to a downturn in its primary operations.
