British department stores group Debenhams like-for-like sales fell by a slightly worse than expected 0.7% in the first half of its financial year and it said it expected the retail environment to remain tough.
The retailer, which runs around 145 stores across the UK and Ireland, said like-for-like sales fell by 0.7% in the six months to March 1.
Debenhams, which also has around 40 international franchises in 16 countries outside Britain and Ireland, had said in January that like-for-like sales were flat in the first 18 weeks of its financial year, reflecting poor market conditions.
'Following a good performance over Christmas and the January sale, market conditions were tough through the remainder of January and February,' CEO Templeman said in the trading update today.
'The macro economic climate leads us to expect the retail environment to remain challenging,' he said, adding first-half profit would be in line with market forecasts.
Britain's department store owners have struggled as indebted shoppers cut back on spending amid higher energy and food bills and a cooling housing market.
Retail bellwether Marks & Spencer reported its worst quarterly performance in two years in January, when it warned that the pain for retailers could extend in 2009.
