Chow Tai Fook Jewellery's H1 profit down 42 pct on weak demand

Chow Tai Fook Jewellery Group Ltd, China's largest jewellery retailer by market value, said its first-half net profit fell 42 percent on the back of sluggish spending in Hong Kong and Macau, and disappointing sales of gold products.

Earlier this month, it had flagged that it expected first-half net profit to drop by up to 50 percent due to subdued spending in Hong Kong and Macau.

The Hong Kong-listed company, which has a market value of about $7.6 billion and competes with global rivals such as Tiffany & Co, reported a net profit of HK$1.56 billion ($201 million) for April-September. That compared with a profit of HK$2.69 billion in the same period a year earlier.

Revenue for April-September fell 4.1 percent year-on-year to HK$21.12 billion, while overall same-store sales declined 8.7 percent.

Beijing's anti-corruption campaign and a weaker yuan have curbed Chinese spending while a volatile stock market has hurt retailers.

$1 = 7.7496 Hong Kong dollars