HONG KONG, July 13: Shares of shoe maker and distributor Belle International Holdings Ltd jumped nearly 6 percent to their highest level in a week on Friday after it posted surprisingly better same-store sales.
The result was a rare bright spot amid a series of downbeat news from China’s consumer sector, which is feeling the impact of a slowdown that has hit demand for everything from home appliances to luxury goods.
Belle, which distributes brands including Nike, Adidas, Kappa, PUMA, Converse and Mizuno, said its footwear business recorded same-store sales growth of 10.5 percent in the second quarter of 2012, while its sportswear business posted same-store sales growth of 5 percent.
That compared with 2.8 percent and 2.4 percent growth, respectively, in same-store sales in its footwear and sportswear businesses in the first quarter of 2012.
‘It was a better-than-expected set of data. It came as a surprise to the market in an obviously slowing consumption market in China,’ said Steven Leung, a director at UOB Kay Hian.
‘We still have to wait for more performance data to confirm any recovery trend,’ he said.
Belle posted a net increase of 537 retail outlets in mainland China in the second quarter of 2012, bringing the total number to 15,964, including 11,022 footwear outlets and 4,942 sportswear outlets.
That compared with a net increase of 477 outlets in the first quarter.
Belle’s stock rose as much as 6 percent to HK$13.88 on Friday, outpacing a 0.45 percent gain in the benchmark Hang Seng Index.
The rare spot of good news for the sector was short-lived.
Belle’s smaller rival Daphne International Holdings Ltd became the latest company to report a slowdown in sales late on Thursday.
It said same-store sales growth slowed to 14 percent for the second quarter, from 22 percent in the first quarter, while the net addition of points of sale was at 217, up from 149 in the first quarter.
Daphne, which makes and sells footwear under the same name, as well as Shoebox and other licensed brands, said it saw a ‘mid-single-digit’ drop in average selling prices during the second quarter due to aggressive promotional efforts, while labour and rental costs pressured margins.
Daphne shares fell 5 percent to HK$7.23, the lowest since Oct. 13. The stock was down 1.7 percent at 0318 GMT. Li Ning shares gained 0.5 percent and Anta climbed 1.1 percent.
(agencies)
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