The retail business in particular bounced back strongly in the region, EssilorLuxottica said, after a negative second-quarter performance hit by COVID-19 lockdowns in mainland China.

Sales in North America, the company’s biggest market, increased by 3.4% to 3.01 billion euros at constant exchange rates, driven by the direct-to-consumer division, the group said.

“It’s a solid and reassuring publication,” Stifel analyst Cedric Lecasble told Reuters, noting a “resistant” performance in North America and a “good surprise” in other regions, notably Europe amid the macroeconomic downturn and Asia.

While EssilorLuxottica’s broad consumer base in the United States and Europe exposes it to macro pressures in those regions, it is more insulated from inflation than peers in the discount eyewear business thanks to its luxury licences, Bernstein analyst Luca Solca

EssilorLuxottica makes glasses for brands such as ChanelPrada
Despite concerns that the luxury industry’s post-pandemic boom could be cooling, Birkin bag maker HermesLouis VuittonLVMH

EssilorLuxottica’s shares were down 1.8% at 0743 GMT, slightly underperforming France’s blue-chip index CAC 40 that fell 1.2%.