Want a Rolex this year? It'll be pricier

Time is ticking on that bargain Rolex. Try Cartier or Jaeger-LeCoultre instead.

- Andrea Felsted

(REUTERS)

US President Donald Trump's shock 39 per cent tariff on Swiss-made imports to the US is pushing up prices for luxury watches.

As some consumers seek to beat the levies by choosing used watches instead, secondhand values are inflating again. But there are still deals to be found in the secondary market if buyers are prepared to forgo the best-known names and models for something a little less obvious.

Watches have been on a roller-coaster ride over the past five years. Interest exploded during the pandemic.

With demand outstripping supply, waiting lists grew and many buyers turned to used timepieces, sending prices for popular models soaring.

That all changed in spring 2022, when markets gyrated, cryptocurrencies collapsed and interest rates spiked, bursting the secondhand market.

That downward trajectory has now ended, at least for the leading privately held brands. Secondary watch prices rose 1.5 per cent in the three months to Sept 30, compared with the previous quarter, the first clear pickup in values since the first quarter of 2022, according to the latest report from Morgan Stanley and research platform WatchCharts.

The Bloomberg Subdial Index, which tracks prices for the 50 most-traded models, is up about 3.7 per cent in the past six months measured in dollars.

To find out what is driving the secondary gains, we need to look at the market for new watches.

The punitive Swiss tariff rate is forcing brands to raise prices in America.