LVMH posts €38.6bn H1 revenue, jewelry boosts first-half performance

LVMH said on July 27 that first-half 2026 revenue reached €38.6 billion, as the French luxury group pointed to faster growth in the second quarter and a stronger contribution from watches and jewelry. Profit from recurring operations totaled €8.7 billion, free cash flow came to €4.1 billion, and the operating margin held at 22.5%, according to the company’s half-year results. Bernard Arnault, LVMH’s chairman and chief executive, said the group’s second-quarter acceleration was driven in part by Tiffany, Bvlgari and Jonathan Anderson’s first designs for Dior. The company also said the United States accelerated in the first half, Asia excluding Japan showed strong growth, Japan grew over the period and Europe remained resilient. (lvmh.com) ### Where did the growth come from inside the group? LVMH’s watches and jewelry division was the clearest outperformer in the half. The business recorded 11% organic revenue growth in the second quarter, and LVMH said the operating margin improved over the half-year period. Tiffany & Co. generated €5.225 billion in first-half revenue, up 9% from a year earlier, while profit from recurring operations rose 9% to €831 million. (lvmh.com) Tiffany’s Knot and HardWear lines helped that performance, LVMH said, while Bvlgari posted strong growth and its Eclettica high-jewelry and prestige-watch launch generated record revenue. Chaumet continued to expand its Bee de Chaumet line, and TAG Heuer maintained visibility through Formula 1 sponsorship activity. (lvmh.com) ### Did fashion actually recover, or just stop getting worse? Fashion & Leather Goods remained LVMH’s largest division, with €18.146 billion in first-half revenue, down 1% from the same period in 2025. The unit still returned to organic growth in the second quarter, and LVMH described that as a gradual acceleration. Profit from recurring operations in the division fell 7% to €6.195 billion, while the operating margin remained 34.1%. (lvmh.com) Christian Dior was one of the brighter spots inside that segment. LVMH said Dior’s growth accelerated with the start of Jonathan Anderson’s first designs, and singled out the Cigale bag as being well received. Louis Vuitton also benefited from new stores in Beijing and Seoul, which the company said performed strongly. (lvmh.com) ### What does LVMH itself say about regional demand? LVMH said Asia excluding Japan posted strong growth in the first half, extending an improvement that it said began in the second half of 2025. The company also said the United States improved, while Europe and Japan were supported by resilient local demand. In its first-quarter statement in April, LVMH had said local demand in Europe and Japan partly offset lower tourist spending, giving a clearer picture of the travel backdrop entering midyear. (lvmh.com) J.P. Morgan said in a luxury market note that tourist spending in Europe has decreased and that luxury sales in China are expected to be broadly flat in 2026. Bain & Company said in January that China’s personal luxury goods market was expected to return to modest growth in 2026, but called the recovery fragile and uneven across brands and categories. (lvmh.com) ### Why are investors watching jewelry so closely? ContentGrip said LVMH’s half-year results showed a wider gap between “hard luxury” such as jewelry and watches and “soft luxury” such as handbags. That framing matches the company’s segment data, which showed watches and jewelry accelerating while Fashion & Leather Goods only returned to growth in the second quarter. (jpmorgan.com) Hermès reported 6.7% currency-adjusted second-quarter sales growth to 4.1 billion euros on July 29, helped by tourism recovery in Europe and strong U.S. demand, according to Reuters. Reuters also reported that investors had been looking to LVMH’s results for evidence that the sector was turning a corner. (contentgrip.com) October 2026 is the next dated milestone on LVMH’s investor calendar, when the group plans to publish third-quarter revenue. The company’s investor page listed the half-year results as the latest event and showed LVMH shares at 479.70 euros on August 6. (lvmh.com) (investing.com)