Group sales soared 8 per cent to£1.89 billion and like-for-likes rose 4.8 per cent. Group pre-tax profit rose 6.4 per cent to£213.2 million.
At the UK division, H Samuel sales increased 1.8 per cent to£260.8 million, with like-for-likes up 0.7 per cent. Sales at Ernest Jones rose 4.4 per cent to£217.6 million and like-for-likes climbed 1.7 per cent.
Despite the retail environment remaining challenging, UK operating profit rose 12 per cent to£55 million. The company said its strategy remains to improve store productivity and operating margin, lift the average transaction value and increase sales of diamonds. This has been helped by a national TV ad campaign and fewer store refits, compared with last year.
At the US division, which accounts for 75 per cent of total revenue, sales jumped 10 per cent to£1.41 billion, with like-for-likes up 6.2 per cent for the period. On a reported basis, operating profit increased 4 per cent to£173.8 million.
The US arm outperformed the US jewellery market significantly. Signet's share rose to 8.8 per cent, up from 8.2 per cent in 2005. As a whole, the US market grew 7.1 per cent to US$63.1 billion (£31.49 billion) last year.
Signet group chief executive Terry Burman said: 'The group continued to make good progress. The US business again increased its share of the US jewellery market and significantly outperformed its main competition. The UK division reported a solid increase in profits.'
Since the start of the new financial year, trading in the US has weakened, but the strong competitive advantages of the division means it is well positioned to gain further market share. In the UK, like-for-like sales growth has strengthened a little from its performance last year, although the marketplace still remains challenging.
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