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LONDON, Jan 16 (Reuters) - British bicycles and car products
retailer Halfords said it was on track to meet profit
forecasts, as underlying cycling sales grew 5.9% in the 14 week
period to Jan. 3 boosted by strong demand for kids' bikes.
For the full-year 2020, the company said underlying pretax
profit would come in in the range of 50 million pounds ($65.19
million) to 55 million pounds, in line with guidance, helped by
"tight cost controls".
While British retailers struggled with lower consumer
spending over the Christmas trading period, 127-year-old
Halfords bucked the trend, selling a record number of children's
bikes, and building 86,000 custom-made bikes in the week before
Christmas.
Car-related sales were down 2.7% on a like-for-like basis as
low consumer confidence limited sales of more expensive items,
the company said.
"Though pleased with our performance, market conditions
remained subdued and we are not anticipating a near-term
improvement," Chief Executive Graham Stapleton said in a
statement on Thursday.
($1 = 0.7670 pounds)
(Reporting by Elizabeth Howcroft; editing by Sarah Young)
