The British retail chain Marks & Spencer (M&S) fell into a loss for the first time since it entered the stock exchange in 1926. The covidu-19 pandemic had a negative impact on clothing sales. The company announced that it reported a gross loss of £ 87.6 million (CZK 2.6 billion) in the first half of the year, after a profit of £ 158.8 million a year ago.
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Excluding extraordinary items, the loss was only £ 17.4 million. It was so lower than analysts expected. They estimated it at £ 59 million, Reuters reported. Total sales fell 16 percent year-on-year to £ 4.1 billion (CZK 122.4 billion) in the six months ended September 26.
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“Our performance was much stronger than it initially seemed possible,” said Steve Rowe, the company’s chief executive. “We are taking the necessary steps to emerge stronger from this crisis and be ready to succeed in the new world,” he added.
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The company announced in August that it would cut 7,000 jobs due to the effects of the spread of coronavirus, equivalent to almost a tenth of its total workforce. According to the then statement of the Czech representation of the company, the announcement of dismissal does not apply to the Czech Republic. According to its website, Marks & Spencer has 18 stores in the Czech Republic.
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