The sporting goods manufacturer Puma wants to make strong growth despite the difficult conditions in China. “In China we are seeing a gradual improvement in the market environment and are assuming that we will be able to achieve double-digit growth again this year,” said CEO Arne Freundt to the business magazine “Euro am Sonntag”, according to an advance report published on Friday. The manager was confident that the USA would be able to grow again in the coming year. Increases in market share in the two countries continue to be “the most important strategic priorities”.
On Thursday, the share price collapsed after concerns about the development of the third quarter. At times the notes fell to their lowest level since July. Competitor Adidas also got caught up in this maelstrom and suffered losses. Puma then addressed investors’ concerns: “We hereby confirm the outlook for the full year,” said a spokeswoman upon request.
According to Freundt, the third quarter was in line with original expectations. “It shows that we can continue to gain market share in a very difficult market environment.” (dpa)