Asics ends year with sales drop in Europe

By

Jennifer Braun

Published
Feb 19, 2020

Japanese sportswear multinational Asics Corporation ended the year with a slide in sales, as European sales saw a slowdown, in addition to the effect of unfavourable foreign exchange rates.

The company saw sales drop 2.2 percent to ¥378.05 billion ($3.44 bn), an increase of 1.6% at a foreign exchange rate comparative to that of the previous fiscal year, for the full-year ended December 31, 2019. This was mainly due to the effect of unfavourable foreign exchange rates and weak sales of its apparel and equipment category, despite strong sales across its performance running category and the Onitsuka Tiger category, on a local currency basis. 

Regionally, Japanese sales rose 2.3 percent to ¥120.95 billion, due to strong shoe sales to overseas sales subsidiaries. 

In North American, sales fell 0.2 percent (an increase of 1.2 percent on a currency-neutral basis) to ¥78.96 billion, as the performance running category and the core performance sports category performed well. 

In Europe, however, sales fell as much as 9.5 percent and were even down a 3.7 percent on a currency-neutral basis, as the performance running category and the sports style category proved weak.

Sales in greater China also fell by 0.6 percent, while the Southeast and South Asian regions saw sales rise 18.8 percent, again due to Onitsuka Tiger and the performance running category.

Net profit in the year was ¥7.1 billion ($65 mm), mainly due to the recording of deferred tax assets due to tax consolidation in Japan applied from the next fiscal year. In the prior year, the net loss came to ¥20.3 billion.

Likewise, in the fourth quarter, companywide sales inched up 1 percent to ¥91.9 billion ( $837 mm). Net income came to ¥169 million against a net loss of ¥28.6 billion during the same period a year ago.

Looking ahead for the current year, Asics expects revenues to reach ¥400 billion, representing a 5.8 percent increase; operating income to equal ¥9 billion, down 15.4 percent; ordinary income of ¥8 billion, down 20.8 percent; and net income of ¥4 billion, down 43.6 percent.