Feb 25, 2021

Discount retailer Primark predicts £1.1bn loss in first-half sales

Primark owner Associated British Foods estimates it will lose £1.1bn in sales over the first half of its financial year as coronavirus-induced restrictions have forced the retailer to close its stores for weeks at a time. The UK group expects Primark, a discount fashion chain that does not sell online, to generate about £2.2bn of sales in the six months to the end of February, compared with £3.7bn in the same period a year earlier. "Our retail performance in the first half was materially impacted by the restrictions on movement of people and of trading activity put in place by the UK and European governments," the group said in a trading update for the 24 weeks to February 27 on Thursday. The group said it expected first-half revenue and profit in its grocery, sugar, agriculture and ingredients businesses to be "Ahead of both expectations and the first half of last year". Over the previous quarter, revenue at Primark fell 30 per cent after Covid-19 restrictions across Europe shut three-quarters of its stores.

Read the full story

 Related companies

Make a complaint about Primark by viewing their customer service contacts.