LONDON: Britain's biggest furniture retailer, MFI is facing a mini-crisis after its profits took a dive from £31.1 million to £22.9 million in the first half of the year.
But there was some cheer as sales rose by 7.7 percent to £ 757 million. And chief executive John Hancock remained optimistic that the second half would be better for the company, "Following a difficult period the group is now making progress, albeit in a highly competitive marketplace. The customer environment remains challenging. (But) we are confident that the supply chain is stable and we remain focused on rebuilding profitability in the UK Retail division," he told media persons.
He added that it was too early to say how the trading conditions would affect the retailer in the second half of the year as the market continued to be volatile. However, he felt that the imminent rate cuts by the Bank of England gave some cause for hope that the present tough conditions would ease out.
MFI's positive balance was heavily backed by its Howden Joinery. Group, which saw a 14 percent rise to £259 million. The other businesses accounted for only about a 3 percent rise to £429 million. Also the net orders for the first half of the year registered a 2 percent dip to £477 million.
The UK retail arm of the company reported a £18.0 million operating loss. However, the furniture retailer's new line of products including bedrooms that cost less than £500 are doing brisk business and constituted nearly one quarter of the orders received in the first half.
Posted
on : Fri, 22 Jul 2005 06:50 GMT | Loans News
By : Pippa Fielding
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