DIY trend boosts B&Q performance

B&Q sales were helped by new products and fewer competitors

The owner of the B&Q chain has said that the business has benefited from a growing trend for home and garden DIY.

Parent firm Kingfisher said B&Q's like-for-like sales - which ignore new stores - rose a better-than-expected 0.7% in the 10 weeks to 11 July.

The popularity of low-cost room makeovers boosted sales of kitchens, bathrooms and bedrooms, it said.

Like-for-like sales across the whole Kingfisher group - which includes French chain Castorama - fell 1.9%.

The recent bout of fine weather and the ongoing resilience of the UK consumer have played into the company's hands Richard Hunter, Hargreaves Lansdown Stockbrokers See Kingfisher's share price

Like-for-like sales at its other French business Brico Depot fell 5.6%, and sales at B&Q China, where business has been hit by the weak property market, dropped 13.2%.

However, in the UK, Kingfisher said its B&Q chain had benefited from new ranges and the withdrawal of competitors, such as MFI, from the market. It added that profit margins at B&Q were higher, thanks to less price-cutting.

"We have continued to perform well in a tough environment," said Kingfisher's group chief executive Ian Cheshire.

Richard Hunter, head of UK equities at Hargreaves Lansdown Stockbrokers, said: "Kingfisher has today lent its weight to the current round of pleasant surprises emanating from the High Street.

"The recent bout of fine weather and the ongoing resilience of the UK consumer have played into the company's hands."

Latest government figures showed that UK retail sales rose by 1.2% in June, much higher than expected, with the spell of hot weather encouraging people to spend.