Retail in Asia

In Sectors

Tiffany profit falls short, outlook beats street

Tiffany & Co. reported a smaller-than-expected quarterly profit as sales of lower-margin rough diamonds rose faster than its pricier and more profitable jewellery, and its shares fell 2 percent.

Tiffany’s gross margin fell 0.7 percentage points to 58.7 percent during the quarter, in large part because of the rough diamond business, which stems from the resale of diamonds the company does not polish for its own use and one that hardly generates any profits.

Tiffany said it has had to contend with what it called volatile swings in the price of precious metals and diamond prices since 2008, hitting margins last year.

(Source: CNBC)