Adidas' H1 sales in China grow 36.9 pct y-o-y

Sales of Adidas in China grew 36.9 percent year-on-year and reached 2.4 billion euros (around 2.84 billion U.S. dollars) in the first half (H1) of this year, the German sportswear manufacturer announced on Thursday.

In the second quarter (Q2) of this year, sales in China declined 16.3 percent to 1.0 billion euros, but Adidas still recorded a "steady business recovery as well as sequential sell-out improvements" in the country, the company noted.

"With sports taking back center stage this summer, we delivered a very successful quarter," said Adidas CEO Kasper Rorsted. Due to unexpectedly high demand, the company saw an acceleration in its top- and bottom-line, he added.

Overall, currency-adjusted Q2 sales of Adidas increased by 55 percent year-on-year and reached 5.1 billion euros in the second quarter, according to the company. After losses of 317 million euros in Q2 last year, net income grew to 407 million euros.

In Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA), net sales almost doubled year-on-year and reached 1.9 billion euros in Q2, according to Adidas. At the same time, net sales in North America surged by 72.0 percent to 1.2 billion euros.

Despite challenges from the ongoing COVID-19 crisis and supply bottlenecks, Adidas raised its forecast for the current year and expects its currency-neutral sales to increase by up to 20 percent.