Exports of Swiss watches to the United States fell sharply again in November. Manufacturers delayed their deliveries as they waited for the tariff reduction to 15 percent to come into effect.
Exports to the United States fell 52.3 percent in November, according to watch association data released Thursday. This decline follows declines of 46.8 percent in October, 55.6 percent in September and 23.9 percent in August. The reason for this was the 39 percent tariffs that Washington imposed on Switzerland in August. These have now been renegotiated.
“You have to treat these numbers with caution,” warned Yves Bugmann, president of the watch association. The watch companies knew a cut was coming. “They obviously did not export to the United States while waiting for the 15 percent rule to be implemented,” he explained.
After three trips to Washington since August, Economics Minister Guy Parmelin returned to Bern in mid-November. He brought with him a draft treaty to reduce tariffs to 15 percent.
The effective date of this reduction was delayed. However, the minister ultimately announced last week that it would come into effect retroactively to November 14th.
“Excluding the United States, exports recorded moderate growth of 2.2 percent. This confirms the relative resilience of most other major markets,” commented Vontobel analyst Jean-Philippe Bertschy in a market analysis.
In November, exports of Swiss watches to China fell by 3.2 percent and to Japan by 4.1 percent. However, they rose 3.1 percent to Hong Kong and 7.9 percent to the United Kingdom, Europe’s largest watch market.
According to the analyst, the watch sector is preparing for a ‘mixed’ start to 2026. The comparison with Asia will be more favorable, ‘but the United States remains unpredictable,’ he warns.
2025 was very turbulent for Swiss watch manufacturers due to tariffs. These caused great concern in the industry. Not only is the United States its largest market, but growth there also helped offset declining demand in China.
Following April’s announcements of what Donald Trump called ‘Liberation Day,’ watchmakers rushed to replenish their inventories in the United States. This happened before the new tariffs came into effect. Deliveries stopped abruptly in August when the levy rose to 39 percent.
- Swiss watch exports to the United States fell sharply in November as manufacturers delayed shipments from 39 percent to 15 percent in anticipation of a tariff cut.
- Despite the decline in the US, exports to other key markets such as Hong Kong and the UK showed growth, indicating overall sector resilience.
- The Swiss watch sector is looking ahead to an uncertain 2026 with mixed expectations. The reason for this is the unpredictability of the US market, which is its largest market and offsets demand in China.
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