Luxury goods market faces rare decline

Sales of personal luxury goods are set to fall 2 per cent this year, making it one of the weakest on record, with price hikes and economic uncertainty shrinking the industry’s customer base, according to consultancy Bain & Company.

In its closely-watched report on the 363-billion-euro ($386 billion) market, Bain estimated a 20-22 per cent sales drop in China, which has turned into a drag after a years-long boom before the pandemic fuelled by the wealthy and growing middle-class.