03/06/2026

BIZ & FINANCE WEDNESDAY | JUNE 3, 2026

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Luxury brands seek to lure America’s AI super-rich o Sector reports stronger sales growth in US than elsewhere

“Artificial intelligence must be a source of prosperity for France,“ said Finance Minister Roland Lescure. Since the first “Choose France” in 2018, a year after Macron came to power, more than 230 projects have been announced, representing several thousand jobs, according to the Elysee. France has attracted the most foreign investment in Europe for seven straight years, according to the consultancy EY. “We are first in class in Europe,“ Macron said. “But when I compare with the rest of the world, we can do even better.” EY said France attracted 852 projects last year out of 5,026 recorded in 47 European countries – a 17% drop in a difficult international environment. As a selling point, Macron praised the predictability offered by France and Europe. “None of us can change the rule overnight,“ he said in a veiled reference to Donald Trump. But Macron called for continuing regulatory simplification and faster decision-making in France as well as in Europe. While France has attracted more projects linked to AI than anywhere else in Europe, industry has suffered, particularly the automobile, chemical and metallurgy sectors. – AFP Carney under fire as Canada economy contracts OTTAWA: Prime Minister Mark Carney faced criticism on Monday for his leadership of Canada’s economy after figures showed it entered into what economists call a technical recession. Official figures released last week showed the economy contracted by 0.1% in the first quarter of the year, following 1% negative growth in the fourth quarter of 2025. “Mark Carney has created the only G7 economy in a recession,“ opposition leader and Conservative Party head Pierre Poilievre told reporters in Ottawa, charging that people across the country were “struggling to pay their essentials”. Canada has not experienced two consecutive quarters of negative growth since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. Parts of Canada’s economy have shown resilience after more than a year of tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump. But Trump’s sectoral tariffs targeting autos, steel, aluminum and lumber have slowed growth, and analysts say the broader uncertainty surrounding the future of US-Canada economic ties has hurt the economic climate. Canada lost 112,000 jobs in the first quarter of 2026, a figure not seen since the start of the pandemic. Canada and the United States are set to discuss revisions to a North American free trade agreement known as USMCA over the coming weeks. Trump is eyeing substantial changes to the deal and persistent tariffs across various sectors. Any enduring hurdles to US-Canada free trade could further unsettle Canada’s economy. But economists have urged caution when assessing whether it is in fact in recession, noting that the first quarter contraction was marginal. “Yes, real GDP has contracted for two consecutive quarters. But while this is a necessary condition to call a recession, it is not sufficient,“ economists at Desjardins said in a note last week. “More than half of the industries in Canada have been expanding over the past six months, and consumers have continued to increase their purchases of goods and services,“ the note said. – AFP

Held at the Versailles palace west of Paris, the investments announced at the ninth “Choose France”event represent the creation of 15,600 jobs, in what Macron called “obviously by far a record edition”. “Everything you signed here, everything which was announced during these days ... will be executed and delivered on time,“ Macron said in a speech in English to foreign business leaders after bilateral meetings and round tables. “I put my credibility in front of you on the table,“ he added, as uncertainty remains over the future of the event after he leaves office in 2027. Money pledged for this year is set to surpass the combined €87 billion raised over the past eight years, according to Macron’s office. “It’s the fruit of reforms, consistency, and an ecosystem we’ve managed to build,“ Macron said, touting the tax and labour law reforms undertaken since his first term in 2017, as well as a “super competitive” decarbonised nuclear energy sector in the midst of a global energy crisis. The pledges include €45 billion from Japanese tech investor SoftBank. Its founder, Masayoshi Son, said over the weekend that it would spend €75 billion on artificial intelligence infrastructure, including €45 billion by 2031 on data centres in northern France. MILAN: European luxury brands have sharpened their focus on the United States, with a surge of store openings and fashion shows to lure a new crop of wealthy shoppers enriched by the AI and tech boom and offset weak consumer confidence in the rest of the world. After two years of contraction, the luxury goods sector was showing signs of stabilisation until the Iran war that began at the end of February, disrupting travel and denting luxury spending far beyond the Middle East. And China, the biggest source of luxury sales growth for two decades, is still struggling to tackle deflation and the lingering impacts of a property crisis, so the sector needs rich Americans more than usual. “The US high-end consumer has been much more resilient than we are seeing elsewhere, especially in Europe,” said Marcus Morris-Eyton, portfolio manager at AllianceBernstein in London, adding that the continued AI rally and healthy wage growth have boosted this cohort of spenders. Luxury brands, such as LVMH, Moncler and Gucci, have been quick to respond. Dior and Gucci showed their cruise collections in the US last month and Italian brand Zegna is set to present its Summer 2027 collection on Friday in Los Angeles. Even last year, North America for the first time took the top spot for new store openings, according to real estate firm Savills’ global luxury retail report, which has tracked data since 2016. The report found North America

and the Middle East are impacted by weaker tourist spending in the ongoing Iran war. Most luxury brands do not report US figures specifically, but their first-quarter reports show growth in the broader Americas region was much stronger than elsewhere. Cartier owner Richemont’s sales grew 18% in the Americas from January to March, the group’s ninth consecutive quarter of double-digit sales growth in the region. The strength of the US luxury consumer has also boosted American groups Ralph Lauren and Coach owner Tapestry whose sales have outpaced rivals. “Our core customers are loyal and resilient,” Ralph Lauren chief product and merchandising officer Halide Alagoz told Reuters. “What we see so far is that their behaviours are not changing. On the contrary, consumers during these turbulent times want to come to brands that they can trust.” Tapestry CEO Joanne Crevoiserat said there was potential to grow in North America. “We’re building emotional connections and bringing new, younger consumers into the market in North America and beyond.” Morgan Stanley analyst Edouard Aubin said upcoming American IPOs could drive spending on high-end watches and jewellery, but cautioned that US nationals account for about 20% to 22% of global luxury spend. “It’s nice, it’s helpful, but you need China to get better as well for the sector to really recover,” he said. – Reuters

accounted for about 27% of global luxury store openings in 2025, compared with 26% of openings in Europe and 19% in China. Globally new luxury store openings fell to their lowest level since 2020. The US has fewer luxury stores relative to its numbers of super-rich consumers than China, according to Savills research. “Many brands still view the US as unpenetrated relative to the scale of its wealth base,” said Todd Siegel, Chicago-based president of US retail at real estate firm Savills. The investment in stores is focused not just on major East and West Coast cities. It extends to second-tier states and cities where high-net-worth individuals have moved, attracted by lower tax rates than California or New York, Siegel said. Italian luxury outerwear group Moncler, for instance, has said most of its new stores will be in the U.S. this year. It opened a store in the luxury ski resort of Aspen in January and plans to open its largest flagship store globally on New York’s Fifth Avenue in the second half of the year, as well as new locations in California’s Valley Fair, and in Dallas, Texas, among other cities. French luxury group Hermes opened its first stores in Nashville, Tennessee, and Scottsdale, Arizona, last year. It plans to open in the Plaza del Lago shopping centre in Wilmette, north of Chicago this summer, and in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, in September. Consultancy Bain said the luxury sector reflected a “two-speed world” as the United States and parts of Asia grow, while Europe

Macron announces €93 billion in ‘Choose France’ foreign investments PARIS: President Emmanuel Macron announced “record” foreign investments of €93 billion (RM428 billion) at an international conference on Monday, including for AI and data centres, staking his “credibility” on their implementation at the summit’s final edition under his leadership. infrastructure at a second site, after a first already under construction. Retail giant Amazon – which said this month that it would invest more than €15 billion in France over the next three years, creating 7,000 jobs – said it would create an additional 1,000 jobs at three logistics centres.

Macron arrives to deliver a speech during the ‘Choose France’ business summit in Versailles. – AFPPIC

computing capacities in Europe,“ compared with the United States and China, he added. Son said the country’s nuclear-powered electricity was a key factor in choosing France. Among other investors, Canadian asset manager Brookfield is to invest US$10 billion in a data centre in northern France. The Emirati fund MGX and French public investment bank Bpifrance said they would be investing around €7.5 billion in AI-related

Macron said the other investments would be directed toward artificial intelligence, data centres, semiconductors, critical minerals, tractors and trucks, steel and healthcare. Macron said the projects would help “make France by far the leading country hosting data centres” and “computing capacity in Europe”, as well as a “forward base for the production of AI robots, and for industrialisation through AI”. “We are clearly bridging the gap we had in