China and Australia have driven strong Pandora sales growth in the second quarter.

In the Asia-Pacific region, sales soared 35 per cent with Australia and China the star performers.

Worldwide sales by the Danish jeweller rose 12 per cent to US$770 million as the company continued to optimise its global retail network. Like-for-like sales were up 10 per cent.

Like-for-like sales in the US rose 8 per cent, but total sales by just 1 per cent.

Revenue from rings, earrings, necklaces and pendants combined rose 23 per cent and now account for 23 per cent of total sales. Sales of charms rose 6 per cent and of bracelets by 19 per cent.

Pandora’s gross margin for the quarter was 73.9 per cent, down from 75.3 per cent year-on-year, reflecting increased promotional activity and exchange rate changes.

Pandora CEO Anders Colding Friis, said the company was pleased with the results.

“Markets like China, Italy, the UK, and Australia performed well, reflecting the significant growth potential for our product offering in both our newer and more developed market,” he said. “We also continue to make strides in improving the quality of our global store network and added net 70 new concept stores during the quarter.”

Pandora is working towards changing its business model from a focus on charms and bracelets into a broader range of traditional jewellery.