Dixons Carphone reports strong online trading during Covid-19 crisis
Dixons Carphone has given an update on the impact of the coronavirus outbreak on its business.
While its stores in the UK and Greece are now closed, nearly all of its shops in its Nordic regions are continuing to trade.
The retailer said its online trading has been very strong in all countries over the last two weeks. This was due to people buying technology items to enable them to work at home. It said early signs are showing the increase has continued since the shop closures and will help to mitigate the effect of lost store sales.
Giving an update on trading in the 11 weeks to 21 March, Dixons Carphone said electrical like-for-like sales rose by 8%. This included a 23% uplift in the last three weeks. Items selling particularly well have included laptops, printers, TVs, gaming products, fridges, freezers and kitchen appliances.
The retailer said the loss of store sales will impact its full year profitability and means it will not achieve its previous guidance for full year adjusted pre-taxt profit of £210 million.
It added: The Covid-19 situation continues to develop and is likely to remain uncertain for some time. We will therefore not update current year or medium-term guidance until the impact of COVID-19 becomes clearer.”
