Kuwait’s imports of Swiss watches declined by 6.6% during the first five months of 2025, totaling $91.23 million (27.92 million dinars), compared to $97.71 million (29.91 million dinars) during the same period in 2024, according to the Swiss Watch Industry Federation. Despite the drop, Kuwait maintained its position as the 25th largest importer of Swiss watches globally.
In contrast, Kuwait recorded a 6.4% annual increase in Swiss watch imports in 2024, reaching $233.7 million (71.53 million dinars), up from $219.6 million (67.23 million dinars) in 2023, according to Al-Rai daily.
Regionally, the UAE topped the Arab world and ranked 7th globally with imports of $637.1 million. Saudi Arabia followed, ranking 15th globally and second regionally at $175.5 million. Qatar ranked 19th globally and fourth in the Arab world with $145.3 million, while Bahrain came in 30th globally and fifth regionally with $52.47 million.
According to Kuwait’s General Administration of Statistics, total watch imports (all types) rose by 11.8% in 2024, amounting to 103.12 million dinars, compared to 92.2 million dinars in 2023. Quarterly imports were 20.77 million dinars in Q1, 25.1 million dinars in Q2, 27.3 million in Q3, and 29.93 million dinars in Q4.
Globally, Swiss watch exports continued to grow despite economic uncertainty, increasing by 1.1% to $13.16 billion in the first five months of 2025, compared to $13.01 billion in the same period last year. Exports to the Middle East totaled $1.25 billion, representing 9.6% of total Swiss watch exports.
