Zara owner Inditex reports slower start to summer trading
Zara owner Inditex posted Q1 revenue of US$9.44 billion for the period ending April 30. (EPA Images pic)
MADRID : Zara owner Inditex missed expectations for first-quarter (Q1) sales and the start of summer trading today, heightening doubts over the fast-fashion retailer's ability to deliver strong sales growth in an uncertain economic environment.
Fears of resurgent inflation and an economic slowdown triggered by tariffs have already dampened consumers' enthusiasm for shopping in the US and elsewhere.
Inditex reported a slower start to its summer sales, with currency-adjusted revenue growth of 6% from May 1 to June 9, compared to analysts' expectations of 7.3%, and down from 12% growth in the same period a year ago.
Revenues for its Q1 ending April 30 were €8.27 billion (US$9.44 billion), missing analysts' average estimate of €8.36 billion, according to an LSEG poll.
Net income increased 0.8% in the quarter, to €1.23 billion.
Inditex did not provide a reason for the weaker sales growth.
In a statement, it called its performance 'solid', having labelled it 'very robust' at its last results announcement in March, when annual sales were up 10.5%.
Rainy weather in Spain, which accounts for 15% of Inditex's global sales, has also likely hurt its performance, according to Bernstein analysts.
With volatility in foreign exchange markets driven by trade risks, Inditex said currency fluctuations will have a bigger impact than previously expected, predicting a 3% negative effect on its 2025 sales, compared with the 1% it flagged in March.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Malay Mail
an hour ago
- Malay Mail
‘No space for Bezos': Venice locals protest billionaire wedding with banners and backlash
ROME, June 14 — Residents of Venice, already fed up with crowds of tourists cramming into their canal city, now have one more gripe: Jeff Bezos. The billionaire Amazon founder is due to marry journalist Lauren Sanchez in a celebration in Venice from June 24 to 26 that is expected to attract countless VIPs. Not everyone is feeling the love though, with some residents hanging a huge banner with an X over Bezos's name on a belltower overlooking the Venice lagoon before the sign was removed on Thursday. 'He's not welcome, not in Venice, not anywhere!' wrote the 'No Space for Bezos' collective on Facebook, which was responsible for the banner. Bezos is also the owner of space travel company Blue Origin, whose all-female flight in April carrying Sanchez, pop star Katy Perry and four others met with a public backlash for its high cost and environmental impact. The anti-Bezos group, whose posters and stickers have been seen in recent days across the city, has called a public assembly for Friday evening to drum up opposition. The Unesco-listed city, famous for its romantic gondolas and canals, is a favourite spot for lovers. In September 2014, it was the backdrop for the wedding of Hollywood actor George Clooney and human rights lawyer Amal Alamuddin, a glamourous high-profile event that attracted countless tourists, fans and onlookers. The atmosphere ahead of Bezos's nuptials appeared more hostile. 'Venice is a living city, not a place to rent to the highest bidder,' the collective wrote on social media. Venice's mayor, Luigi Brugnaro, had welcomed the couple's decision, however, saying in March that the wedding would bring in millions of dollars to the city. City hall in March blasted 'fake news' circulating about the wedding, saying that only 200 people were on the guest list and that the event would be 'without any disruption whatsoever to the city, its residents and visitors'. Local media say that five hotels have been reserved for the occasion, as well as an impressive fleet of water cabs and a mooring for Bezos's megayacht. It is unclear where exactly the marriage ceremony will take place. — AFP
Malay Mail
5 hours ago
- Malay Mail
Google rejects Meta's app store age verification plan, citing child safety and privacy concerns
PARIS, June 14 — American tech heavyweight Google yesterday reiterated its opposition to verifying the age of a device's user through the app stores built into operating systems, calling a proposal from Facebook and Instagram parent Meta 'ineffective'. Limiting access to age-restricted content online is a live issue in Europe, with France battling pornography sites over its newly-introduced requirement that they check users' ages. Paris is also one of several capitals pressing Brussels to introduce Europe-wide regulations cutting off access to social networks for under-15s over concerns including addiction, cyberbullying and hate speech. Basing age verification on details from a device's app store 'would require the sharing of granular age band data with millions of developers... who don't need it', such as producers of uncontroversial apps like flashlights, Google wrote in a blog post. 'We have strong concerns about the risks this 'solution' would pose to children,' it added. The search giant's Play Store is a part of the Android operating system, by far the most widely-used around the globe. Google said that using app store data to verify ages would also leave major ways people access content online unprotected for the underage, such as desktop computers or shared family devices. Apple—whose own App Store is loaded on every device running its iOS operating system, such as iPhones and iPads—has also pushed back against Meta's proposal. 'The right place to address the dangers of age-restricted content online is the limited set of websites and apps that host that content,' the iPhone maker said in a February document. 'Implementing age verification at the operating system or app store level will help ensure that we create an ecosystem that's safe for teens,' the Facebook owner's safety chief Antigone Davis told Euronews in February. Meta has sinced launched a campaign for European regulation to require the measure. Europe's Digital Services Act (DSA), which came into force last year, says it is up to platforms like Meta's to verify the age of their users — not providers of operating systems or app stores. Google said that changing to the latter system — which has also been pushed by Pornhub parent company Aylo — would mean 'reengineering the protocols that have defined the decentralized web in ways that are hard to fully predict'. — AFP
Free Malaysia Today
16 hours ago
- Free Malaysia Today
Google rejects app store age verification for online content
Google's Play Store is part of the Android operating system, by far the most widely used around the globe. (Reuters pic) PARIS : American tech heavyweight Google today reiterated its opposition to verifying the age of a device's user through the app stores built into operating systems, calling a proposal from Facebook and Instagram parent Meta 'ineffective'. Limiting access to age-restricted content online is a live issue in Europe, with France battling pornography sites over its newly introduced requirement that they check users' ages. Paris is also one of several capitals pressing Brussels to introduce Europe-wide regulations cutting off access to social networks for under-15s over concerns including addiction, cyberbullying and hate speech. Basing age verification on details from a device's app store 'would require the sharing of granular age band data with millions of developers… who don't need it', such as producers of uncontroversial apps like flashlights, Google wrote in a blog post. 'We have strong concerns about the risks this 'solution' would pose to children,' it added. The search giant's Play Store is a part of the Android operating system, by far the most widely used around the globe. Google said that using app store data to verify ages would also leave major ways people access content online unprotected for the underage, such as desktop computers or shared family devices. Apple – whose own App Store is loaded on every device running its iOS operating system, such as iPhones and iPads – has also pushed back against Meta's proposal. 'The right place to address the dangers of age-restricted content online is the limited set of websites and apps that host that content,' the iPhone maker said in a February document. 'Implementing age verification at the operating system or app store level will help ensure that we create an ecosystem that's safe for teens,' the Facebook owner's safety chief Antigone Davis told Euronews in February. Meta has since launched a campaign for European regulation to require the measure. Europe's Digital Services Act (DSA), which came into force last year, says it is up to platforms like Meta's to verify the age of their users – not providers of operating systems or app stores. Google said that changing to the latter system – which has also been pushed by Pornhub parent company Aylo – would mean 'reengineering the protocols that have defined the decentralised web in ways that are hard to fully predict'.
