(Yicai) Aug. 19 -- Amer Sports, the Finnish group behind premium outdoor brands Arc'teryx and Salomon and majority-owned by China's Anta Sports Products, raised its 2026 revenue growth guidance to 24 percent after better-than-expected second-quarter results, while Arc'teryx resumed net store openings in China after a year of net closures.

Amer Sports now expects full-year revenue to grow 24 percent, up from its previous forecast of 20 percent to 22 percent, according to its latest financial report released yesterday. It had already raised the guidance from 16 percent to 18 percent after reporting first-quarter results.

Amer Sports, whose portfolio includes Wilson and Peak Performance, was acquired by an Anta Sports Products-led consortium in 2019 in a deal that accelerated its expansion in China. The Finnish-founded group returned to the public markets with a US listing in February 2024 and now sells its products in more than 100 countries.

In the second quarter, the sporting goods company's revenue jumped 32 percent from a year earlier to USD1.6 billion, while net income attributable to equity holders surged almost six times to USD107 million. First-half net income attributable to equity holders rose 78 percent to USD272 million.

Amer Sports recorded double-digit revenue growth across all its major markets in the three months ended in June. Revenue in China rose 36 percent to USD556 million, while that in the Asia-Pacific region, excluding China, soared 60 percent to USD248 million.

In the first half, revenue in China climbed 40 percent to USD1.2 billion, while revenue in the rest of the Asia-Pacific region jumped 56 percent to USD487 million.

Arc'teryx Resumes Store Expansion in China

By brand and business segment, Arc'teryx remained an important growth driver. Revenue from the technical apparel segment, which is centered on Arc'teryx, rose 33 percent from a year earlier to USD674 million in the second quarter, making up more than 40 percent of Amer Sports' total revenue.

Arc'teryx resumed net store openings in China this year after recording net closures in 2025 as it adjusted its regional store network, Amer Sports Chief Financial Officer Andrew Page said during the earnings call. The brand net opened one store in the second quarter, a flagship in Chengdu, and plans 10 to 12 net new stores for the full year, mostly in the second half and particularly the fourth quarter.

Arc'teryx is already the largest premium outdoor brand in China, Amer Sports Chief Executive James Zheng said. While growth is expected to normalize after the rapid expansion of the past five years, the Chinese market should continue to post robust double-digit annual growth, he noted. Arc'teryx has 140 stores in China versus an estimated market capacity of 200, leaving room to further increase its market share, Zheng added.

Shares of Amer Sports [NYSE: AS] rose 3.2 percent in New York yesterday to close at USD33.62, but remained almost 6 percent lower than a year earlier.

Editor: Emmi Laine