(Reuters) – German sportswear maker Puma said on Tuesday it expected a mixed first half of 2024, still weighed down by negative currency effects, but it maintained the annual targets it gave in January .
“As we enter 2024, we see that the market environment remains challenging,” CEO Arne Freundt said in a statement.
The sportswear sector, hit by rising material and freight costs, as well as inventory markdowns and increased promotional spending, saw demand weaken. Customers, who are facing inflation, have also reduced their spending on expensive products.
In the fourth quarter of 2023, currency-adjusted sales in the Americas region fell 6.4% to €846 million, with the collapse in the value of the Argentine peso.
Currency-adjusted sales in the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region also fell 5.2% year-on-year to 667.9 million euros, compared with an increase of 9 .9% over the year in the third quarter.
This decline is mainly due to generally higher inventory levels in the trade, Puma said.
The group reiterated its forecasts for 2024, namely single-digit growth in turnover adjusted for currency effects and earnings before interest and taxes of between 620 and 700 million euros.
On the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, Puma shares gained more than 3% in early trading.
(Reporting by Alexander Huebner, Linda Pasquini and Ozan Ergenay; French version by Gaëlle Sheehan, edited by Blandine Hénault)
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