Fashion powerhouse H&M has reported lower than expected sales in its first quarter, as like-for-like sales continue to slow.
In the period from December 1 to February 28, H&M reported flat sales in local currencies, while sales excluding VAT dropped 1.6 per cent from 47 billion SEK (£4.12 billion) to 46.1 billion SEK (£4.05 billion).
This comes in well below Reuters’ mean forecast of a 1.2 per cent growth.
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It follows a 32 per cent drop in net profits in the previous quarter, alongside warnings last month that “2018 is expected to remain challenging”.
“H&M’s sales in comparable stores are expected to remain negative with a gradual improvement during the year,” H&M continued.
It added that sales at the beginning of the year were likely to be hit by heavy markdowns but expected these to be offset by an online sales boost.
H&M is set to publish its full quarterly report on March 27.
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