PARIS, Jan 28 (Reuters) - Luxury bellwether LVMH beat expectations on Tuesday with a 1% rise in fourth-quarter sales as demand for designer fashion and handbags picked up over the holiday season, adding to hopes the sector has turned a corner.
The owner of brands including Louis Vuitton handbags and Bulgari jewellery said sales for the three months to end-December reached 23.9 billion euros ($24.95 billion), as its main fashion and leather division almost matched last year's numbers and sales jumped at its retail unit.
The growth outpaced an expected 1.6% decline, according to a consensus forecast cited by Morgan Stanley.