THe retail sector will be in sharp focus this week as the likes of online fashion firm Asos, department store stalwart Debenhams and suits specialist Moss Bros issue new figures.
Debenhams, which is due to report fourth-quarter numbers tomorrow, has delivered solid sales growth in recent months as its recently appointed chief executive Michael Sharp leads a turnaround at the chain.
Sales rose 3.1 per cent in the 16 weeks to 23 June, against 0.3 per cent in the previous half year.
Sharp, who was appointed last September, has been focusing on improving sales growth rather than margins – a strategy that has paid off, according to analysts.
Fraser Ramzan at Nomura is pencilling in a 2 per cent rise in like-for-like sales growth in the final quarter, while Investec analysts predict a 1 per cent increase.
French Connection is poised to report a hefty half-year loss on Wednesday after revenues declined by 7 per cent on a year earlier.
The group, which has borne the brunt of the high street slowdown, has already warned the result for the six months to 31 July will be £7 million below last year, when it recorded an operating profit of £300,000.
Asos is expected to report more rampant growth in its last trading update of the financial year as it shrugs off the economic gloom. The group, which targets 20-somethings with clothes based on outfits first worn by celebrities, is forecast by broker Numis Securities to report sales growth of around 30 per cent in the June to August period.
Moss Bros will update on the roll-out of its new-look stores on Thursday as it reveals a set of steady half-year results.
The firm, which has 135 stores in the UK, is forecast to report broadly flat pre-tax profits of £2.3m in the six months to the end of July.
