Swiss watch exports rose 10.9 percent to a record of 12.3 billion Swiss francs (9.5 billion U.S. dollars) in 2005, the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry said on Thursday.

"The year 2005 clearly established a new record by exceeding the 12 billion-Swiss-franc mark for the first time and surpassing by 10.9 percent the already high level of 2004," the federation said in a statement.

Results for 2004 stood at 11.1 billion Swiss francs (8.5 billion U.S. dollars), with a growth of 9.2 percent over the previous year.

Thanks to excellent results in the luxury segment, the Swiss watch industry avoided the pitfalls of the "less than favourable" economic situation, particularly in Europe, the statement said.

In terms of markets, the United States headed the list with a 14.5 percent growth to 2.1 billion Swiss francs (1.6 billion U.S. dollars).

Hong Kong ranked second, with a growth of 7.7 percent, reaching 1.8 billion Swiss francs (1.4 billion U.S. dollars). Japan also continued its forward momentum in 2005 with a value of 1.1 billion Swiss francs (850 million U.S. dollars).

Watches were a key factor in the country's overall strong export figures for 2005, which stood at 151.5 billion Swiss francs (116.5 billion U.S. dollars), a rise of 6.9 percent over the previous year, according to figures from the Federal Customs Office.

After a low point in the 1970s, the Swiss watch industry has recovered strongly.

Over the past five years, the industry, which includes a huge range of products from low-range to luxury, has become one of the best-performing economic sectors in the country.

Source: Xinhua