Advertisement
UK markets close in 7 hours 1 minute
  • FTSE 100

    7,960.66
    +28.68 (+0.36%)
     
  • FTSE 250

    19,796.20
    -14.46 (-0.07%)
     
  • AIM

    741.80
    -0.31 (-0.04%)
     
  • GBP/EUR

    1.1678
    +0.0009 (+0.08%)
     
  • GBP/USD

    1.2591
    -0.0047 (-0.38%)
     
  • Bitcoin GBP

    56,158.02
    +698.12 (+1.26%)
     
  • CMC Crypto 200

    885.54
    0.00 (0.00%)
     
  • S&P 500

    5,248.49
    +44.91 (+0.86%)
     
  • DOW

    39,760.08
    +477.75 (+1.22%)
     
  • CRUDE OIL

    81.64
    +0.29 (+0.36%)
     
  • GOLD FUTURES

    2,215.70
    +3.00 (+0.14%)
     
  • NIKKEI 225

    40,168.07
    -594.66 (-1.46%)
     
  • HANG SENG

    16,541.42
    +148.58 (+0.91%)
     
  • DAX

    18,496.81
    +19.72 (+0.11%)
     
  • CAC 40

    8,238.57
    +33.76 (+0.41%)
     

ASOS Profits Take Hit After Warehouse Fire

Online fashion retailer ASOS (LSE: ASC.L - news) has seen its profits hit after last year's warehouse fire.

The firm has reported a 10% fall in its pre-tax profit to £18m in the six months to the end of February.

This is down from £20m for the same period last year.

In its interim results statement, the company said its profit before tax included "business interruption reimbursements of £6.3m in respect of a warehouse fire in the prior financial year".

The blaze at its Barnsley warehouse last June damaged 20% of the stock inside.

ASOS managed to restart orders within 48 hours of the fire and then launched a sale, with discounts of up to 50%, a day later.

ADVERTISEMENT

The drop in pre-tax profit comes as the company reported a 14% hike in overall retail sales for the six-month period compared to the previous year, rising from £472.3m to £536.4m.

UK retail sales were up by 27% and international sales by 5%.

The number of active customers using the online retailing site also rose by 13% to 3.3 million.

Chief executive Nick Robertson said the trading period included a record Christmas season.

He said: "Our customer engagement remains high, with growth in visits, average order frequency, average basket size and conversion all improving.

"Our active customers grew by 13%, exceeding the nine million mark for the first time."

He added: "With our continued investment in our international rice competitiveness gaining traction, momentum in the business is building.

"This gives us confidence in the outlook for the second half and that full year profit and margin will be in line with expectations."

The company's results come as online fashion rivals Net-a-Porter and Yoox announced they were joining forces .