Ready to wear apparel seller Esprit Holdings Ltd reported its first annual loss since it had publicly listed back in 1993. 2012 saw two of its top executives resign from their posts as well as declining sales and closure of some of its retail outlets. 

The company reported a net loss of HKD4.39 billion or USD566 million for the financial year ending June. This was greater than the Bloomberg survey analyst projections of HKD3.4 billion.

The company is based out of Hong Kong and according to its CEO Jose Manuel Martinez Gutierrez, it would be returning to profitablity by the end of the fiscal year in June 2014. He told reporters that Esprit generates about 78% of its sales from Europe against an increasingly competitive market with rivals Hennes & Mauritz AB and Inditex SA's Zara brands.

The stock of the retailer closed at 7.2% lower, registering at HKD11.66 per share. This was the largest drop for the retailer since October 2012. From that time, the stock value had increased 5.6% prior to the release of the fiscal year's earnings report.