Cautious Optimism Fills Baselworld Buoyed by Asian Demand for Luxury

By William George Shuster
Special Correspondent

A fractured arm kept me from attending Baselworld this year. Fortunately, I know some of the best writers and experts in the jewelry and watch industry. One of those folks is William George Shuster who has kindly agreed to take time from his busy schedule to write a few stories from the tradeshow. Below is his first report from the event.

BASEL,

Swiss Watches Exports Up 19.3% led by Growth in Asia

The entrance to the main watch hall at Baselworld, the world's largest watch and jewelry fair held in Basel, Switzerland.  Photo credit: Anthony DeMarco

The Swiss watch brand is as strong as ever and shows no sign of losing its luster.

Following the recovery of 2010, watch exports in the first half of 2011 showed a year-over-year increase of 19.3 percent to 8.7 billion Swiss francs ($10.8