Nike, the US sporting goods giant, reported adjusted net earnings for the first quarter of its fiscal year down 12% due to margin pressure from slower sales in China and lower costs. Group executives also issued a warning about the coming months, noting that margins will still remain under pressure and will only rebound at the end of the year to be close to zero for the full year.
In electronic exchanges on Wall Street, the stock lost 3,2% to 92,82 dollars. Net income for the quarter was $567 million, still ahead of analyst expectations. Revenues increased 10% to $6,7 billion, still beating expectations. "Phenomenal" sales for Nike in North America (+23% year), while in Western Europe they decreased by 5% and in Eastern Europe they increased by 2%. Sales in Japan fell 6%. In China sales increased by 8%, but the slowdown in growth is felt and translates into a sharp increase in inventories.
