Pre-owned Rolex sales boom amid Trump tariff threat

Watch aficionados bought up used Rolex and Patek Philippe watches at the end of April, in an effort to avoid post-tariff price hikes as threatened by US President Donald Trump, as reported by Bloomberg on Friday.

The watch dealer and trading platform Subdial observed a 160% bump in April – far above the average 112% bump experienced over the past year, added the report.

The trend was noted mostly in the US and UK.

Analysts have attributed this hike to a flurry by customers to splurge before Trump’s tariffs hit, which will raise the prices of imported Swiss goods in the US by at least 10%.

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The phenomenon echoed another trend seen in Switzerland, where watch exports jumped by nearly a fifth in April – with shipments to the US more than doubling ahead of expanded tariffs, added Bloomberg.

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Tariffs are also threatening the prices of metals – silver and gold to rise even further.

The current gold rally has also driven up the demand and prices of specifically gold timepieces.

Last month, Bloomberg reported that demand for used gold Rolex watches was rising as precious metal prices soared and collectors seek out dressier models.

Three gold timepieces made by the Swiss luxury brand have climbed the most places since the 2022 launch of the Bloomberg Subdial Watch Index, which tracks prices for the 50 most-traded models by transaction value, added the report.

The yellow-gold Day-Date 228238, which Rolex suggests retailing for €43,800 ($48,050), was the index’s fastest climber, rising from 30th place to ninth in that period.