Swatch results better than expected

Bienne-based Swatch Group said Tuesday it recorded a net profit of 763 million francs in 2009, down 8.9 percent from the previous year but above estimates from financial analysts.

As previously announced, annual sales for Switzerland’s largest watch company fell 8.1 percent to 5.4 billion francs from 2008’s record year.

However, Swatch said it performed better than the Swiss watch industry as a whole, adding that prospects for the coming year are "excellent" after a good start to the year.

The company said sales in January were the second-best in its history.

Swatch’s board of directors is proposing an expansion of its members to include Jean-Pierre Roth, who recently stepped down as chairman of the Swiss National Bank, and Georges Nicolas (“Nick”) Hayek, CEO and son of the company’s chairman Nicolas Hayek.