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Geneva, Switzerland—Swiss watch exports fell by 3.3% in 2015, the first time the industry has posted a decline since the deep recession in 2009. According to figures from the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry, total exports in 2015 totaled CHF 21.5 billion ($21.2 billion U.S. dollars, or 19.5 billion euros).

The 2015 slump was closely linked to a steep 9.1-percent fall in demand in Asia, the main market for Swiss watches, which absorbed exactly half of all the exports last year. An inflated Swiss franc also shares much of the blame, but it’s also clear that the introduction of the Apple watch (shown left in the Hermes version), plus demand for other smart watches, is nipping at traditional watchmakers’ heels.

A 22.9% contraction in Hong Kong—the key Asian market for luxury Swiss timepieces—is blamed for the majority of the drop. Exports to mainland China also were down 4.7% last year, although showed some improvement towards the end of the year, bouncing up 5.5% in December, FHS said. The overall decline would have been sharper, had not it been for stronger demand from the United States, which helped to stem downtrend.

But it wasn’t all consumer-driven. Since the Swiss central bank suddenly decided to stop artificially trying to hold down the Swiss franc’s value against the euro, the franc surged 11% since the change last January, dealing a further blow to Swiss exports.

But far from being the fad some executives dismissively said wouldn’t impact luxury watch sales, wearable tech got its punches in too. Pundits had been watching the Apple Watch in particular, since it is playing in the luxury space, especially with its gold Edition models.

So did wearable tech really make a difference? The answer is yes, though midlevel brands are feeling the most pain. In an article in 9 to 5 Mac, Swatch co-inventor Elmar Mock said the day after the Apple Watch was launched that “anything in the price range of 500 francs to 1,000 francs [US $500-$1,000] is really in danger.”

This article on Bloomberg.com concurs, citing tough results for other low-end brands like Swatch and U.S. watchmaker Fossil Group Inc., which saw its stock slump 37% in November after saying fourth-quarter sales may decline as much as 16% amid competition from wearable technology.

The industry has begun to cut jobs to adjust for a drop in demand. Richemont said on Nov. 16 that it’s cutting 85 positions at watch-dial maker Stern Cadrans, shifting some employees to other sites.