(Reuters) -British electrical appliance retailer Currys Plc warned of lower annual profit on Thursday, saying it expected the new financial year to be difficult due to uncertain consumer spending.
Britons have been cutting back on shopping and withholding purchases of non-essential items as the country’s inflation hit decades-high, pushing consumer confidence to a record low.
“Inflation is very likely to create a headwind to consumer spending and impact sales, particularly in some of our more discretionary categories,” Chief Executive Officer Alex Baldock said in a statement.
The company expects adjusted profit before tax for the year ending April 2023 to be in the range of 130 million pounds to 150 million pounds ($155.26 million to $179.15 million), compared with 186 million pounds a year earlier.
However, Currys expects to continue to be free cash flow generative during the year.
Groups’ like-for-like revenue for the full-year ended April 30 fell 3%.
($1 = 0.8373 pounds)
(Reporting by Radhika Anilkumar in Bengaluru; Editing by Rashmi Aich)
