LONDON (dpa-AFX) - Home improvement retailer Kingfisher plc (KGF.L) reported Monday that its third-quarter total group sales edged down 0.6 percent from last year to 3.22 billion pounds. Sales at constant currency were flat, while it dropped 1.1 percent on a like-for-like basis at constant currency.
Regarding the current trading, the company said trading in the fourth quarter has started with an improvement versus the exit rate from the third quarter, with Group LFL sales down 0.5 percent for the three weeks to November 23.
Looking ahead to fiscal year, the company noted that guidance range has been tightened, now expecting adjusted profit before tax of around 510 million pounds to 540 million pounds, compared to previously projected around 510 million pounds to 550 million pounds.
The company expects near-term market outlook to remain uncertain.
In its third-quarter trading update, Kingfisher noted that sales were in line or ahead of the market across all its banners.
UK & Ireland sales were 1.62 billion pounds, up 1.2 percent on a reported basis, and up 0.4 percent on LFL basis.
In France, sales fell 6.4 percent to 967 million pounds, and the drop was 4.3 percent on LFL basis.
Other International sales grew 4.7 percent to 637 million pounds.
Thierry Garnier, Chief Executive Officer, said, 'Improved performance in August and September was offset by the impact of increased consumer uncertainty in the UK and France in October, related to government budgets in both countries.... We continued to see improved volume trends in our core categories, supported by repairs, maintenance and existing home renovation. As expected, sales of our 'big-ticket' categories remained soft, although we are seeing early signs of improvement.'
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