Halfords has reported better-than-expected profits, expecting underlying pre-tax profits between £32 million and £37 million. Despite a notable increase in sales of 13.1% in December and 5.5% in January, the company remains cautious. They express concerns over the impact of recently introduced tax policies from the autumn Budget, which could affect consumer confidence starting in April. Additionally, Halfords highlighted ongoing improvements in trading and strategic initiatives related to pricing and cost management.
Despite the recent positive performance, there remains considerable uncertainty regarding the outlook for the UK consumer in light of measures introduced by the autumn Budget, which take effect from April.
While the impact of changes to the minimum wage and national insurance contributions are relatively easy to quantify... their effects on the demand environment and health of the broader economy are harder to predict.
Collection
[
|
...
]