Jeans are seen for sale at Marks and Spencer, Hempstead Valley branch at the soon to be opened clothes branch of the store in Gillingham, Britain, June 1, 2020.
But it cautioned the economic outlook remained uncertain and flagged the impact on the consumer from the highest interest rates in 20 years, deflation, geopolitical events, and erratic weather.
"Therefore, against more challenging comparatives, we expect profit before tax and adjusting items to be weighted towards the first half, as we remain laser-focused on our long-term ambition to reshape M&S for future growth," it said.
M&S reported profit before tax and adjusting items of 360.2 million pounds ($442 million) for the six months to Sept. 30, versus analysts' average forecast of 276 million pounds and 205.5 million pounds made in the same period last year.
($1 = 0.8149 pounds)Reporting by James Davey; Editing by Kate HoltonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
Persons:
Jeans, Dylan Martinez, Spencer, MKS.L, James Davey, Kate Holton
Organizations:
REUTERS, Marks, Thomson
Locations:
Marks, Spencer, Hempstead Valley, Gillingham, Britain