Kingfisher sales flat

Kingfisher had flat sales as wet weather dampened demand for seasonal products like barbecues and garden furniture. Total sales were relatively flat as they inched up 0.8% to £3.3 billion during the first quarter to April 30. Like-for-like sales declined by 3.3%. The core and big-ticket categories, which make up 82% of sales, were down 1.3% whereas seasonal categories making up 18% of sales declined by 11.3% due to weather conditions. However the home improvement retailer said trading since early April had shown “improvement” in seasonal sales and it expected to report adjusted profit-before-tax of £634 million for full-year 2023/24.