Lego posts stable profits in difficult global toys market

Danish toymaker Lego posted stable profits for 2023 in the face of a difficult market for the sector, in figures released from company headquarters in Billund on Tuesday.

Profits came in at 13.1 billion krone ($1.92 billion), slightly down from the 13.8 million krone posted in 2022. The figures marked an end to a sustained period of rapid growth.

"We are pleased with the continued top line growth following three consecutive years of double-digit growth," Lego chief executive Niels Christiansen said. "We also maintained a solid bottom line, while continuing to spend significantly on strategic initiatives to support long-term growth."

In remarks to dpa, Christiansen described the toy market as "really negative" during 2023 and the worst for 15 years.

Turnover rose 2% to 65.9 billion krone, with the City, Technic, Star Wars and Harry Potter series leading the way.

"Our strong financial foundations allow us to invest for the future, including expanding global manufacturing capacity, digitally enabling our business and becoming more sustainable," Lego said.

Renewable resources were used for 12% of the bricks made. The target is 100% renewable or recycled by 2032.

Lego also said it was investing in innovating core play themes, exploring new play forms as well as bridging digital and physical play.

The company said it saw strong consumer demand for its portfolio, mainly in the US, but that this had partly been offset by a decline in China.