Sales for this period totalled €2,384m, with declines in China and the US leading to a sales decrease of 14%.

The US saw a 16% drop, with sales impacted by inventory adjustments, as sales in China saw a decrease of 27% with continued macroeconomic weakness that impacted consumer demand, alongside inventory adjustments. 

India saw “strong underlying growth” of 3%, according to the group, with the exception of the Maharashtra State as demand was impacted by excise policy changes. 

Global travel retail sales declined by 15%, following the resolution to the cognac anti-dumping investigation in July, the suspension of cognac sales in China duty free has ended, with sales expected to resume from quarter two.

Travel Retail in Asia beyond China remained weak, notably in South Korea, which was impacted by weakness in the domestic market, however in Europe and America, underlying performance has been strong over the summer while sales were impacted by phasing.

The group saw positive sales momentum in quarter one in markets including Canada, Turkey, Japan and South Africa. 

However, the group saw a decline in Brazil due to phasing, and a sharp decline in Mexico and Taiwan due to weak consumer demand.