Sunshine and Royal Wedding lift Next

4th May 2011 07:13

Warm weather and the Royal Wedding holiday had shoppers flocking to Next's stores in the 13 weeks to 30 April, the fashion retailer Next said as it reported better sales than expected for the period.Total sales for the period excluding VAT were up by 5.2% from the same period the previous year, ahead of guidance given in March of between -0.5% and +2.5%."We estimate that at least 2.5% of the over-performance came as a result of exceptionally warm weather over Easter and spending in anticipation of the Royal Wedding Bank Holiday," said Next. "We believe these factors have encouraged consumers to bring forward summer purchases and we do not expect the current levels of growth to continue into the second quarter."Nevertheless Next has upped its pre-tax profit estimates for the full year by about £15m to between £535m and £585m, based on expectations of full year sales growth of between 1% and 4%."Despite the strength in recent sales, we remain cautious for the full year given that there has not been a significant change in the underlying economic environment," said Next. "The combined effects of the public sector deficit cuts and continued inflation in essential commodities are all likely to restrain growth in consumer spending generally."Analysts said that the postive trading reported by Next is also likely to have been experienced by other retailers."What has benefited Next will also have benefited M&S, if not more so, given the added attraction of the food offering, and also helped Debenhams," broker Matrix said.---RG