Tiffany says October sales strong as legal battle with LVMH drags on

(Reuters) – Tiffany & Co said on Thursday sales have been rising through October with its business in the midst of a rebound, as the jeweler looked to counter claims from French luxury giant LVMH that its prospects were “dismal”.

The companies have been locked in a heated legal battle since last month after LVMH said it would walk away from its $16 billion deal to buy Tiffany, citing an official foreign ministry request to delay the closing of the transaction and worsening business conditions at Tiffany because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tiffany said its sales in Mainland China were “extremely strong” and its business was recovering in the United States, boosted by strong online demand.

The company said fourth-quarter earnings are expected to increase by mid-to-high single digit percentage from a year earlier.

(Reporting by Uday Sampath in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila and Shounak Dasgupta)