Tiffany & Co.'s profit slipped 56%

Tiffany & Co.'s worldwide sales rose 5% year on year to $1.298 billion and same-store sales improved 2% for the fourth quarter that ended on January 31. The retailer's cost of sales increased 1.6% to $513 million; however, Tiffany & Co. recorded an arbitration expense of $480 million with Swatch, which led to reporting a quarterly loss of $104 million compared with earnings of $180 million one year ago.