Burberry sales growth slows in first quarter

LONDON, July 15 (Reuters) - British luxury goods maker Burberry on Wednesday posted underlying growth of 8 percent in first quarter retail revenue, a slowdown from the previous period partly reflecting a further deceleration in Hong Kong.

The 159-year-old firm, known for its British-made trench coats and cashmere scarves, said it made 407 million pounds ($637 million) of retail revenue in the three months to June 30.

That compared to analysts' average forecast of 414 million pounds and growth of 13 percent in the second half of Burberry's 2014-15 year.

Comparable store sales growth was 6 percent, in line with analysts' consensus forecast but down from 9 percent in the second half. ($1 = 0.6394 pounds) (Reporting by James Davey; editing by Kate Holton)