Luxury fashion retailer Burberry’s adjusted operating profit has risen 3 per cent but it said trading has been more difficult since the start of the second half.
Adjusted operating profit climbed to£98.4 million in the six months to September 30, 2008.
Retail like-for-likes rose 3 per cent, while wholesale revenue increased 23 per cent. Revenue from licensing remained flat.
Underlying revenue increased 13 percent to£539 million, boosted by demand from tourists and strong sales of luxury handbags.
All regions except Spain showed positive like-for-like growth, with Korea, Singapore and Australia performing particularly well. Burberry said its performance in France, Germany and the UK was “solid”. Spain’s like-for-likes were down 20 per cent.
The company said that if initial trends continue, adjusted pre-tax profit would be in “mid to lower half” of the current range of market expectations.
Burberry has made cost efficiencies in its supply chain as well as design and product development, which will deliver savings of£15 million to£20 million in the next financial year.
It experienced double-digit growth across all product categories.
Burberry chief executive Angela Ahrendts said: “The fundamentals of Burberry remain strong, despite the current very challenging environment. With our supply chain and IT investments we are now in a position to drive significant efficiencies in the near term. These benefits underpin our confidence in the future long-term growth of Burberry."
Burberry Middle East joint venture
Burberry also announced a joint venture with The Jashanmal Group in the Middle East. The venture's headquarters will be in Dubai and it will trade as Burberry Middle East.
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