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How Watchmakers Are Dealing With Soaring Gold Prices

As gold tops $4,600 per ounce, executives including Breitling CEO Georges Kern are bracing for a hit to margins. Solutions range from seeking new materials to raising prices or postponing gold purchases.
The company’s chief executive Georges Kern said he hoped the moves would power up business in a challenging market.
Breitling's chief executive Georges Kern said very few brands have enough pricing power to pass on soaring gold prices to customers. (Breitling)

The skyrocketing price of gold has highlighted its status as a safe haven, hitting another record this week after more than doubling in two years, and shooting well past the historic threshold of $4,000 an ounce to top $4,600 an ounce.

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Further Reading

Dubai Fair Doubles Attendance as Luxury Watchmakers Turn East

Amid a global downturn, the Middle East is emerging as the watch industry’s most promising frontier. But questions over tariffs, inventories and the relevance of blockbuster fairs persist. At Dubai Watch Week, Robin Swithinbank took the temperature, speaking to the CEOs of Audemars Piguet, Breitling, Chopard, LVMH’s Hublot and more.

End Times for Swiss Watchmakers?

This week, President Trump’s tariff on Switzerland went into effect, landing levies of 39 percent on every watch the country exports to the US. For some Swiss watchmakers, the threat is existential.

About the author
Robin Swithinbank

Robin Swithinbank is a contributing writer at The Business of Fashion. Swithinbank is a London based journalist, editor, and speaker who specialises in luxury watches.

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