(Yicai Global) July 16 -- France's victory in the World Cup Final yesterday spelled bad news for Chinese home appliance maker Vatti, which will pay out some CNY79 million (USD11.8 million) in refunds to consumers following a recent marketing promotion linked to Les Bleus'success.

As the official partner for the French team, Zhongshan-based Vatti had promised its customers full refunds on a range of products purchased in June if the team lifts the World Cup. France completed a resounding victory over Croatia in Moscow yesterday evening to lift the trophy for the second time in their history.

Vatti [SHE:002035] saw its share price tumble by around one-third between July 2 and July 4 after the French team defeated Argentina to reach the quarter-finals, though this was also the result of a court decision to seize assets of the company's Beijing and Tianjin distributors after rumors of their disappearance. Shares rose 3.97 percent today to close at CNY15.18 (USD2.27).

The appliance maker only needs to refund customers who bought products online, it said on July 5, while regional distributors are responsible for refunds related to offline sales. Online sales increased 20 percent annually during the June promotional period to CNY300 million. Vatti would only need to refund manufacturing and partial marketing costs of the products eligible for the campaign, totaling less than CNY29 million.

Editor: William Cleg