Feb 27 Reuters Puma on Tuesday said it expects a soft first half of the year as negative currency effects continue to put pressure on the German sportswear company, but stuck to the annual targets it gave in January.

Going into 2024, we see that the market environment remains challenging, CEO Arne Freundt said in a statement.

The sportswear sector, hit by rising material and freight costs as well as inventory markdowns and higher promotional expenses, has seen demand weaken as customers battling with inflation cut spending on highpriced goods.

In the fourth quarter of 2023, Puma39;s currencyadjusted sales in the Americas fell by 6.4 to 846 million euros 918.5 million, hit by a slump in the value of the Argentine peso.

Currencyadjusted sales in the Europe, Middle East and Africa EMEA region also dropped 5.2 on the year to 667.9 million euros, compared to a 9.9 yearonyear increase in the third quarter.

The decline was mainly due to generally higher inventory levels in the trade, Puma said.

AsiaPacific revenue rose 2.8 on a currencyadjusted basis to 468.3 million euros in the quarter, helped by strong growth in the Greater China region and India.

However, Puma flagged that sales in the rest of Asia were softer, impacted by consumer sentiment and warm weather.

The group reiterated its 2024 forecast for midsingledigit percentage growth in currencyadjusted sales, and earnings before interest and tax of 620 million to 700 million euros.

The company said it would be…