NKE Nike Inc

By Kimberly Chin 

Sales at Nike Inc. rose in the latest quarter as the retailer experienced strong growth from direct and digital sales despite pressures from store closures in China as the coronavirus outbreak spread.

Digital sales rose 36% across all its regions, with the company reporting digital sales growth of 30% in Greater China amid store closures related to the coronavirus outbreak.

For the fiscal third quarter ended Feb. 29, Nike's sales in China fell 5.2% to $1.51 billion due to measures to contain the outbreak, though the company said it had strong double-digit sales growth in the first two months of the quarter. Nike, which doesn't own factories, produces about 25% of its global apparel and footwear in China.

Nike is among a large group of retailers that closed thousands of stores across the U.S. this month for at least two weeks, taking unprecedented measures to stem the spread of the new coronavirus.

For the most-recent quarter, the company saw direct sales grow in the double digits.

Revenue in Nike's North American market, which accounts for the majority of total sales, rose 4.4% to $3.98 billion.

Overall sales rose 5% from a year ago to $10.1 billion, pulling ahead of analysts' estimates of $9.81 billion.

Shares of Nike, which have fallen 12% in the past 12 months, shot up 6.3% in after-hours trading Tuesday to $76.85.

Write to Kimberly Chin at kimberly.chin@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 24, 2020 17:32 ET (21:32 GMT)

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