LVMH On the Move! Q2 Revenue Rises 23%

LVMH said revenue rose to €8.38 billion ($9.29 billion) in the quarter, while first-half net profit rose 15% from a year earlier to €2.96 billion. LVMH doesn’t publish quarterly profit figures. LVMH’s second-quarter results show that the company’s weak spots are on the mend. Organic revenue growth, which strips out the effects of the currency volatility, was 9%.

“We are confident with the remaining part of the year,” said Chief Financial Officer Jean-Jacques Guiony. “Most of our markets are showing good momentum.”

LVMH’s fashion business is growing again, led by a Louis Vuitton brand that has come back in vogue. Sales at its fashion and leather goods division, which makes up more than a third of total group revenue and includes Louis Vuitton, Fendi and Bulgari, rose 24% to €2.96 billion in the three-month period. The division’s organic revenue growth was 10%.

Mr. Guiony said sales of Louis Vuitton’s staple monogram handbags “have been very strong” though he didn’t break out figures for the label.

Meanwhile, sales at LVMH’s wine and spirits division rose 19% to €992 million. While cognac sales continued to struggle in China as a continuing crackdown on corruption and gift-giving has crimped sales there, demand for both cognac and Champagne was strong in the U.S., the company said.

Sales in Asia excluding Japan declined 5%, as Chinese tourists shunned the traditional shopping hub of Hong Kong, opting for other cities with less political volatility.