Leading Chinese jeweller Chow Tai Fook has reported a 46% slump in profits and a 12% dip in revenues for the financial year ended March 31, 2016 mainly on account of the slower growth in the Chinese mainland and a fall in tourist-driven purchases in Hong Kong and Macau, while releasing its annual financial results today.

Last month, the jeweller had informed investors that it was expecting a 40-50% drop in profit forthe financial year.

Total revenue for FY 2016 stood at HK$56,591.5 million, 12% lower than the HK$64,277.0 million recorded in FY2015. Of this, HK$ 48,325.5 million was from retail operations, while HK$ 8,266.0 million accrued from the wholesale business, the jeweller reported.

Net profit for the year dropped to HK$ 2,941.4 million, 46% lower than the HK$ 5,456.0 million recorded in FY2015.

In geographical terms, the Company said that the jewellery business in Mainland China, which accounts for 56.3% of total sales, was down by 11.3%, while that in Hk,Macau and Other markets, which accounts for 39.2% of total sales was down by 14.9%. It added that same-store sales of its jewellery business in mainland China fell 10.3%, while that of Hong Kong and Macau fell 21.7%.

Similarly, there was a drop in sales across all product segments. Gold products, which accounted for 55.3% of all sales, were down by 8.5%, while gem-set jewellery products, which accounted for 27.4% of sales, saw a decline of 10.8%. However, the revenue from gem-set jewellery as a percentage of revenue increased by 0.4% points, the Company said.

Chow Tai Fook said that its retail network expanded to 2,319 POS as at 31 March 2016, with a net addition of 62 POS in FY2016.

The Company reported that basic earnings per share were HK29.4 cents, a decrease of 46.1% when compared to HK54.6 cents in FY2015. It proposed final and special dividends of HK8.0 cents and HK22.0 cents per share, respectively.

Analysing the current and future developments in Mainland China, the Management said, “Taking into account the relatively stable fundamentals, continuous urbanisation and the ever-growing middle-class in the region, we believe that Mainland China will stay the course on sustainable growth.”

However, the Company maintained a cautious outlook on Hong Kong and Macau, saying, “We expect the market environment for the region to remain challenging in the year ahead.”