Music and books retailer HMV has said it is well set up for the key Christmas trading period as it unveiled an expected first-half loss.
The retailer, which runs Waterstone's bookstores as well as music shops under its own name, said in a statement pre-tax loss was £28.7m in the six months to October 27.
That compares to a £29.2m loss last year.
Total group like-for-like sales grew 5% in the first six months, including growth of 9.2% at HMV UK and Ireland and 1.4% at Waterstone's.
The company proposed an unchanged interim dividend of 1.8 pence.
Shares in HMV, which have outperformed the UK general retailers' index by around 6% so far this year, closed at 117 pence yesterday, valuing the company at around £454m.
