The owner of Zara Inditex on Wednesday recorded an increase in sales in the fourth quarter, which met the expectations, even when the retailer pointed to the slowdown of demand at the beginning of the year.
The Spanish retailer reported revenues of EUR 11.21 billion (USD 12.2 billion) in three months, corresponding to the forecast of EUR 11.2 billion by LSEG analysts and compared to EUR 10.34 billion registered in the same period last year.
Net income in the fourth quarter was EUR 1.42 billion, also as expected by analysts.
It follows rare With regard to sales and profit in the third quarter, which the company assigned partly the American dollar.
All -year sales increased by 10.5% in terms of neutral currency to a total of EUR 38.63 billion in 2024, just before the expected EUR 38.57 billion, while net income amounted to EUR 5.88 billion during the year, according to forecasts. Compared to net sales, EUR 35.9 billion and net income of EUR 5.4 billion in 2023, which according to the company was Record ups.
Actions fell by 7.2% to 9:30 in London.
The company, which is also the owner of Pull & Bear, Bershka and Massimo Dutti, pointed to a slightly slower sales rate in the first quarter this year. Revenues increased by 4% in neutral conditions in currency from February 1 to March 10, compared to 11% of the previous year.
When asked about a slowdown during a conversation with earnings, CEO óscar García Maceiras said that the company remained “sure of our performance for the coming year”, according to Reuters. However, he pointed to uncertainty around American tariffs, which made the environment “difficult to predict”.
The results indicate the expanding gap between Inditex and the rival H&Mwhich is struggling with increased competition from cheaper retail sellers, such as a giant of fast fashion, overwhelmed by Chinese.
In January, H&M reported sales in the fourth quarter no expectations Nevertheless, it increased by 3% in local currencies to 62.19 billion Swedish Kron ($ 6.15 billion). The Swedish retailer High Street said that Black Friday's schedule hurt sales, but things increased in December and January.
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