Luxury group Richemont beats sales forecasts in its third quarter

ZURICH, Jan 15 (Reuters) - Cartier-owner Richemont CFR.S reported a 4% increase in its reported third-quarter sales on Thursday, beating expectations, as high-end jewellery demand remained strong.

The world's second-largest luxury company, whose brands also include Van Cleef & Arpels and Buccellati, said its sales from September to December increased to 6.40 billion euros ($7.45 billion) from 6.15 billion euros a year earlier.

The figure beat an analyst consensus of 6.28 billion euros ($7.31 billion) cited by Visible Alpha. When measured in constant currencies, Richemont's sales rose by 11%, a slight slowdown from the 14% rate of the previous three months.

($1 = 0.8595 euros)