Pandora slips in Copenhagen amid concerns over the US market

(Il Sole 24 Ore Radiocor) The sluggish US market is weighing on Pandora on the Copenhagen Stock Exchange. Shares in the jewellery manufacturer are suffering one of the worst falls on the Stoxx Europe index, slipping by over 4 per cent. US demand for Pandora jewellery has stabilised at low levels, following the decline seen in May, due to inflation, high fuel prices and economic uncertainty, which have weighed on low- and middle-income consumers, said CEO Berta de Pablos-Barbier at the opening of the new large-scale factory in Vietnam. The US is Pandora’s most important market (the company is known for its affordable jewellery) and, whilst it has not seen any further declines, it has yet to recover, added de Pablos-Barbier. Asia has proved to be a positive exception, helping to revise the organic revenue growth forecast for 2026 upwards to 3%, compared with the previous estimate of between -1 per cent and 2 per cent, whilst business in Japan has more than doubled in around three years, the CEO also noted. The company is investing $150 million in the factory in Vietnam, its first production site outside Thailand and, according to Pandora, the world’s largest jewellery manufacturing facility. The factory will increase Pandora’s production capacity by around 50 per cent; it covers 7.5 hectares and is expected to employ 7,000 people when fully operational. The Danish company also operates three factories in Thailand, which employ around 13,000 people. Initially, Vietnam will account for around 15 per cent of Pandora’s global production capacity, rising to around one-third by 2030. The factory, which is designed to meet global demand rather than that of specific markets, will have a production capacity of up to 60 million items per year. In 2025, Pandora sold 112 million items globally. The investment in Vietnam forms part of the company’s strategy to reduce its exposure to volatility in silver prices by increasing the use of platinum-plated jewellery. Pandora plans to switch around half of its production from silver jewellery to platinum-plated jewellery from next year. When asked about the risk of an increase in US tariffs on products manufactured in Vietnam, de Pablos-Barbier stated that the factory represents a long-term investment, not based on short-term trade conditions. In March, Pandora opened a distribution centre in Canada, enabling Canadian orders to bypass US customs and reducing exposure to US tariffs. Pandora’s share price is also being weighed down by the lowering of the target price from 850 to 825 Danish kroner by analysts at BNP Paribas.