Kingfisher hit by China weakness

Kingfisher said the home improvement market in the UK declined

Home improvements retailer Kingfisher has said profits dropped 75% as it lost money in China and closed Trade Depot in the UK.

The B&Q chain owner said its pre-tax profit in 2008 fell to £90m, although revenue rose by 10.8% to £10bn.

In the UK, sales declined by 2.6% to £4.3bn, as the recession hit consumers upgrading their homes.

The company is closing 22 of its 63 stores in China and will revamp its remaining stores, at a cost of £107m.

'Challenging'

"Although we anticipate the next year to continue to be very challenging, we will remain focused on providing the best choice and value for our customers," chief executive Ian Cheshire said.

The company said it closed all nine stores of its loss-making Trade Depot and opened 45 more Screwfix outlets.

Kingfisher said pre-tax profit, not including the exceptional costs of restructuring in China and the UK, rose 3.1% to £368m.

The retailer said it would cut its dividend to 5.325 pence, from 7.25p in 2007.