Zurich — Swatch Group had enjoyed a strong start to 2018 and is cheered by the recent weakening of the Swiss franc, CE Nick Hayek said. "We saw an end of the year that was very strong — double-digit growth — and now it continues, so every month is a record month for us," he told CNBC in an interview broadcast on Tuesday, adding that the Swiss franc was helping as the Swiss watch maker comes back to levels of about last seen three or four years ago. Swatch — which makes watches under the Longines, Tissot and Omega brands as well as the eponymous plastic watches — had been one of the Swiss manufacturers struggling with the strong franc, which made production in Switzerland more expensive. The franc has lost 2% versus the euro in 2018 and fell last week to its weakest level in three years. Hayek’s bullish outlook came as the Swiss watch industry reported March exports rose 4.8% compared with a year earlier. First-quarter watch exports rose 10.1%, the highest quarterly growth rate since...
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