PARIS (Reuters) - French luxury goods group Hermes (PA:HRMS) on Thursday saw a slight acceleration in sales growth in the third-quarter to 8.8 percent at constant exchange rates, up from 8.1 percent in the previous three months.
Hermes said the improvement was driven by resilient growth in the United States and stronger demand in Europe and in China where tighter controls on luxury goods imports helped lift local consumption.
"We have seen a step-up in sales in continental China," Chief Executive Axel Dumas told journalists in a conference call. "There, local consumption has improved against last year."
The group confirmed its full-year sales targets, including sales growth below 8 percent at constant exchange rates.
Hermes, which employs 12,500 people worldwide, of which 7,000 are in France, said it continued to hire in its workshops and had taken on more than 300 people this year.
The French company's sales figures confirmed improved trends in the luxury goods sector, highlighted last month by forecast-beating numbers from LVMH (PA:LVMH) and Kering (PA:PRTP).