Stars of Basel

Many of the big names in luxury timepieces were seen popping champagne at the mega Basel World watch fair which ended just about a month ago.

No, they weren't celebrating a long-awaited pick up in business. On the contrary, the latest Swiss watch exports data indicate sales continued their slide in February.

Rather, the likes of Rolex, Patek Philippe and Omega, were simply toasting the anniversary of some of their iconic models which were reappearing in new guises to mark the occasion.

More nostalgia in the form of such re-issues seemed to be on display at Basel World than in January in Geneva at the Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie (SIHH), another giant exhibition.

Rolex, for instance, unveiled an up-sized version of the Oyster Perpetual Sea-Dweller to mark the 50th anniversary of this deep-sea diving watch. The Aquanaut, Patek Philippe's sporty steel model introduced 20 years' ago, was reincarnated with an enlarged white gold case; its dial turned …