Swiss luxury goods group Richemont, which owns the jeweller Cartier, said Friday that sales had climbed above their pre-pandemic level thanks to customers in Asia, the Americas and Middle East.

In its first quarter that ends on June 30, Richemont recorded sales equivalent to 4.3 billion euros ($5.0 billion), a leap of 121 percent from the same period in 2020, which was marked by the coronavirus pandemic.

But sales were also 18 percent higher than in the comparable period of 2019, a company statement said, and surpassed an average analyst forecast compiled by the Swiss agency AWP of 4.1 billion euros.

Particularly strong results were reported in the Asia-Pacific region, in the Americas and in the Middle East, notably in Dubai and Saudi Arabia where tourism provided an added boost, a statement said.

In Europe however, sales were 15 percent lower than in the group's first quarter in 2019, owing to a sharp downturn in tourism.

A breakdown by sector showed that jewellery sales led the advance, up by 43 percent compared with the first quarter of 2019, followed by watches.

Fashion sales declined meanwhile, in part owing to fewer travellers stopping at airport boutiques.

On Monday, Swiss watchmaker Swatch Group had reported a jump of 54.4 percent in 2021 first-half sales.