STOCKHOLM: Swedish clothing retailer Hennes & Mauritz (H&M) on Thursday reported a slight drop in second-quarter profits and said it was reducing the number of new store openings to adjust to online shopping patterns. Net profit in the period — covering March to May — was $492 million.
This compared to the 4.6 billion kronor it reported in the corresponding business period in 2018, a result partly affected by a one-off tax income in the United States.
Quarterly sales, measured in local currencies, totalled 57 billion kronor, up 6 per cent year-on-year.
Chief executive Karl-Johan Persson noted that the company had increased sales of clothes at full-price, and during the quarter had lower markdowns and had increased its market shares.
Sales growth was 17 per cent in the United States, and 19 per cent in Russia when measured in local currencies, he said.
In Germany, a major market, sales however dipped 2 per cent year on year, partly over issues with the online sales platform, while sales measured in local currencies increased 5 per cent in Britain and 8 per cent in China. H&M said that online sales, measured in local currencies, increased 20 per cent in the quarter.
Online sales were available in 48 markets with Mexico as the latest addition.— dpa
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