Fast Retailing Holds Forecasts Steady Despite Slump in First Nine Months of 2025

The owner of Uniqlo remains firm in its forecasts for 2025 despite slowing the pace in the first nine months of the current fiscal year. Japan’s Fast Retailing is confident it can dodge the impact of tariffs imposed by the United States on imports from the countries where it produces its garments. Fast Retailing ended the first nine months of the year (ended May 31) with a slowdown in both sales and profit growth for the period.

As reported by the Japanese group, turnover at the end of the first nine months stood at 2,616,708 million yen ($17,8 billion), an increase of 10.57% compared to the same period in 2024. In the first half of the year, the group accumulated growth of 12%.

The company also put the brakes on in terms of profitability, with operating income up 12.23% to 450,952 million yen ($3,07 million) and net income up 8.33% to 359,607 million yen ($2,451 million). Fast Retailing’s gross margin fell by 0.2 points to 53.8%. In the first half of the year, the company’s net income soared 19%.

Fast Retailing ended the first nine months with an increase of 12.23% in its operating profit

Despite the group’s slightly weaker third quarter, the company said its forecasts for the full year remain intact. “The impact for fiscal 2025 is likely to be limited, whatever the tariff level,“ Fast Retailing said in an earnings statement in reference to the new levies applied to production in Asia exported to the United States. The company noted that it has already shipped a considerable amount of products to the United States.

With the secondary chains in the doldrums, Uniqlo is reaffirming its position as the company’s business engine. In Japan, Uniqlo posted an 11% increase in sales in the first nine months of the year, while operating income rose 17.8%. In international markets, Uniqlo’s growth amounted to 12.7%, with operating profit rising by 8.4%.

The Global Brands division, which includes Comptoir des Cotonniers, for example, ended the first nine months of the year with a drop in sales of 3.1% and in the red. The Japanese group is considering the possibility of insolvency proceedings for its Comptoir des Cotonniers and Princesse tam.tam brands, both based in France.