Crocodile Garments wary of double whammy

Chinese apparel retailer Crocodile Garments has warned investors it expects its annual results to “deteriorate greatly” from last year due to a double whammy.

On the one hand, there has been a decrease in gains from the revaluation of its investment properties, while on the other retail sales are down due to falling consumer confidence and Hong Kong protests.

The company has warned that consumers in Hong Kong, where it is listed, and other markets, are spending less due to the global economic downturn and “social chaos”, an apparent reference to the ongoing protests in Hong Kong.

Last year the company reported a profit attributable to shareholders of HK$162.5 million.

“If the negative impact of existing social chaos becomes seismic, results of the garment business are possibly foreseen to worsen,” the company said in a stock exchange filing.