MGFB35: Fashion Stocks Maintain Upward Trend, But Half of Sector Lags Behind

Fourth consecutive rise in the value of fashion on the international stock markets. In November, the Modaes Global Fashion Benchmark (MGFB35) rose 0.87%, following increases of 4.1% in August, 0.4% in September and 7.3% in October. The good run allowed the MGFB35 to reach 31,849 points, the third best value so far this year, but it does not reach the levels of January and February, when it exceeded 34,000 points.

The MGFB35 measures the aggregate evolution of the capitalization in euros of the 35 listed companies that make up the selective index and is influenced by the evolution of currencies in the foreign exchange market. In November, currency fluctuations weighed on the MGFB35, which at constant exchange rates would have risen by 1.1%.

The MGFB35’s rise in November took place against a backdrop of weak gains on the international stock markets: between October 31st and November 28th, the US Dow Jones rose by 0.32%, while the Eurostoxx gained only 0.1%.

Only 18 of the 35 stocks included in the MGFB35 improved their share price in November

The negative side of the MGFB35 results in November is the irregularity among the 35 groups that make up the selective. In fact, only 18 of the 35 stocks included improved their share price in November, which fell for the remaining 17 companies.

Among the risers, the US groups dominated the table very prominently, thanks in general to better-than-expected results from the companies themselves and analysts. At the head of the gains was VF Corporation, which increased its share price by 24.6%. It was followed by Capri, up 22.3%, Gap, up 18.5%, Ralph Lauren, up 14.9%, and Macy’s, up 14.7%.

Three other U.S. groups rounded out the list of the month’s eight biggest stock-market risers: Levi Strauss and Birkenstock (of German origin but listed in the U.S.), both up 8.6%, and PVH, up 8.2%.

The biggest rise on the stock exchange of a non-US listed company was that of Switzerland’s Richemont, which increased its value by 7.3%. It was followed by China’s Anta, up 4.8%, and France’s LVMH and L’Oréal, with rises of 3.8% and 3.6%, respectively.

On the other hand, only two companies closed November with double-digit declines: the British JD Sports, whose shares fell by 17.1%, and the Chinese Chow Tai Fook, down 10.3%. Britain’s Burberry, the U.S.-based Dicks and Sweden’s H&M were also among the month’s worst performers, with declines of 7.9%, 6.7% and 5%, respectively.

Between Gap’s strong rise and H&M’s bad month were its rivals in large-scale retailing: Spain’s Inditex rose 0.7% on the stock market in November, while its Japanese rival, Fast Retailing (owner of Uniqlo) rose 0.8%.

In sports, in addition to JD and Dicks, Adidas also fell by 2%. Nike, the global leader in the sector, achieved the weakest rise of the month, 0.1%, surpassed by Anta, which rose 4.8%.

In luxury goods, stock market performance was mixed, with LMVH leading the way. Italy’s Prada, which is listed in Hong Kong, rose by 0.3%, while France’s Hermès and Kering lost 2.3% and 4.6% of their value, respectively.

Updated monthly by Modaes, the MGFB35 is the result of multiplying the previous month’s value by dividing the sum of the current month’s market capitalizations in euros of the 35 companies that make up the selective by the sum of the previous month’s capitalizations, taking into account a corrective factor if there are changes in the number of shares. The MGFB35 was launched in September 2011, with a trading base of 10,000 points.