ZURICH, Switzerland — Swiss watch exports plunged 16 percent in October, the biggest monthly drop in seven years, as demand weakened in almost every major market for Rolex and Omega timepieces.

Shipments fell to 1.68 billion francs ($1.7 billion), the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry said in a statement Tuesday. The decline was much greater than expected and was made worse because October was the weakest month of last year, according to Zuzanna Pusz, an analyst at Berenberg.

The longest slump in more than two decades is threatening employment in the Swiss watch industry, which had been riding a boom as rich Chinese bought more timepieces. Richemont plans to cut more than 200 positions at brands such as Vacheron Constantin, the Unia trade union said last week. That came after sweeping management changes at the Geneva-based luxury-goods maker, which eliminated the role of chief executive officer.

“Given the wide expectation of a rebound in the fourth quarter, the weaker October data is likely to be taken negatively for both Swatch and Richemont,” Berenberg’s Pusz said in a note.

Swatch shares fell 3.7 percent to 285.3 Swiss francs at 9:07 a.m. in Zurich, while Richemont declined 2.5 percent to 64.1 francs. Exports have fallen 11 percent in the first 10 months of the year, and 13 of the top 15 markets were negative in October.

Shipments to Hong Kong, the biggest market, fell 22 percent versus 40 percent in September. Exports to US declined 17 percent, however the UK posted 9 percent gain, as weaker pound drove sales marking the market's fourth month of increase. The Chinese market also surged and posted a 2.8 percent gain, the market's fourth month of recovery.

By Thomas Mulier; editos: Matthe Boyle and Paul Jarvis.

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