L'Oreal shares fell Wednesday after the firm flagged an increasing challenging ecosystem in China was impacting its sales. 'In China, where L'Oreal Paris is the number one mass brand, its division continued to suffer from low consumer demand,' the French beauty group said in a Tuesday statement released after the market close. Overall sales grew 6% on a like-for-like basis in the third quarter and growth was observed in all regions except for North Asia, L'Oreal said.
'The situation in the Chinese ecosystem has become even more challenging, but we believe in the future of this market and hope that the governmental stimulus will help improve consumer confidence,' said CEO Nicolas Hieronimus. Luxury firms rallied in September after China launched a large-scale stimulus package in a bid to boost growth and restore confidence in the world's second-largest economy.