Sales decrease by 3% across the 13 global markets tracked by The NPD Group.
The NPD Group has reported on 2019 global toy industry sales, revealing that they dipped 3% across the 13 markets it tracks.
Overall, the industry performed better outside the US, with Russia, Germany, and Brazil up 5%, 3% and 2% respectively. LATAM sales increased 1%, while Europe sales were down 2%.
The first six months of 2019 declined 6%, underperforming primarily due to comparisons with the Toys R Us liquidation sales in 2018 in large global markets.
However, the second half of the year saw a marked improvement, declining just 1%.
In terms of key sectors, action figures and accessories and games and puzzles were the two growth areas for the year, with growth of 14% and 3% respectively. Building sets and dolls also outperformed the market, according to NPD.
“The closures of major specialist chains had the most adverse effect on global toy sales,” commented Frédérique Tutt, global toys industry analyst at The NPD Group. “In those countries where a major chain closed down (US, United Kingdom, Australia and Netherlands), sales were down 5% compared to 2018. Sales outside of those countries, however, were up 1% for the year.
“The industry is preparing itself for 2020. In the US, we are pleased that the threat around tariffs for toys is no longer a concern, but we are now facing a potential industrial crisis with the coronavirus, which is having an impact on manufacturing in China. We hope the situation will improve very soon and we can get back to business as usual.”
