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31 October 2012 10:27
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Fashion retailer Next has said that sales increased towards the end of the third quarter after a slow start, allowing the company to raise its expectations for full-year profits.
Sales in the third quarter were up +2.7%, with stronger sales in late September and early October, making up for the unusually quiet start to August.
The group added that "overall sales performance remains volatile, making it hard to draw conclusions from any one short period of time". However, Next added that it expects total sales in the final quarter to increase "broadly in line with sales for the year-to-date". The group now expects profit before tax to be in the range of £590 million to £620 million rather than the previously predicted £575 million to £620 million range.
