JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) -South African fashion retailer TFG reported on Friday a 21.3% decrease in half-year earnings, as trading conditions remained challenging across Africa, the UK, and Australia with sales supported mainly by the acquisition of British chain White Stuff.
TFG said headline earnings per share fell to 292.6 cents in the six months ended September 30 compared to the prior year. Operating profit declined 9.9% to 2.3 billion rand ($132.85 million), reflecting persistent economic pressures and higher promotional intensity across winter months, it said.
“The period was marked by weak and uneven consumer demand in South Africa, particularly in June and September, which impacted margins and profitability,” the retailer said.
Group gross margin contracted by 20 basis points to 49.3%.
Revenue at group level increased by 12.2% to 31.4 billion rand, supported by the inclusion of White Stuff in the UK and growth in TFG Africa. Online sales rose 55.3%, now contributing 14.7% of total group sales.
The retailer declared an interim dividend of 130 cents per share.
($1 = 17.3125 rand)
(Reporting by Nqobile DludlaEditing by Tomasz Janowski)
