BERLIN, Germany - Gerry Weber has not cancelled any franchise agreements in Russia, which remains one of its most important export markets, the German fashion house said in response to Russian news reports that it was considering pulling out of the country.

"Contrary to the news of the Russian daily press no existing franchise contract has been cancelled or annulled: Russia is and will remain one of the most important export markets for the Gerry Weber Group," it said in a statement on Wednesday.

However, it added that it has a general policy to refrain from doing business with customers with poor credit ratings who have no credit insurance or cannot pay upfront.