Basel, Switzerland - Counterfeit goods posed the biggest
threat so far to luxury goods makers, organisers said Wednesday at
Baselworld, the international showcase for expensive and top brands
held every year in Switzerland.
Fake luxury watches now represented 10 per cent of the total
international trade, worth an estimated 800 million swiss francs (655
million US dollars) to counterfeiters last year alone, said Jacques
Duchene, President of the Exhibitor's Committee.
He was speaking at the official opening, the day before the trade
fair throws open its doors to the public. Swiss Watch makers had
'never had it so good, expecially the prestigious brands,' he said.
Swiss companies saw another record year with exports up 10 per
cent in 2006 on the previous year rising to 13.7 billion swiss francs
(11 billion US dollars).
However, even with strong demand, many companies were faced with
making employees redundant due to counterfeiting. There were 40
million counterfeit Swiss products compared to 25 million genuine
watches.
He said: 'The statistics speak for themselves, the situation is
becoming really dangerous.' He added: 'Counterfeits are increasingly
a matter for the specialists, the days of cheap imitations are over.
'The technical skill of the counterfeiters has considerably
increased. We are faced with products that are becoming more and more
difficult to detect.'
Baselworld is seen as the most important show for the watch and
jewellery industry. More than 2,000 exhibitors from 45 countries are
due to unveil their latest products and ranges.
The show, which runs from April 12 to April 19 is expected to
attract around 90,000 industry professionals to Basel.
© 2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-Agentur 
USA
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