Tiffany Holiday Sales Slip as Chinese Tourists Spend Less

NEW YORK (AP) — Tiffany & Co. TIF says holiday shoppers and Chinese tourists spent less on its bling.

The luxury jeweler, famous for its little blue boxes, says sales slipped in the holiday shopping season as Chinese tourists spent less while traveling due to the strong dollar, making it more expensive to buy Tiffany jewelry outside of its stores in China. The company also says it was hurt by the ups and downs of the stock market, the anxiety about Brexit and protests in Paris that forced the company to close its location there during some weekends.

Sales at established stores worldwide fell 2 percent in November and December, compared to the same period the year before.

Still, shares of the New York-based company rose Friday afternoon.