Pz Cussons Share News (PZC)

Retailers are likely to be in focus in the early going with both Debenhams and WH Smith bringing out results that were in line with expectations but which provided further evidence of tough times on the UK high street. Stocks are expected to soften at the outset with the FTSE 100 expected to open down 11 at 5,999.Department store Debenhams posted a rise in profits for the half year to 26 February and said that a focus on value - possibly assisted by a fall in cotton prices - should help it to cope with tough economic conditions. Pre-tax profits of £129.2m before exceptional items were up 4.5% from the same period the previous year and in line with market expectations, the company said. Interim results from newsagent WH Smith were in line with expectations, with like for like sales down 6% on the high street and 3% lower in the group's travel outlets. Profit before tax edged up to £64m from £62m the year before, despite the fall in group revenue to £686m from £716m. More evidence of the threadbare state of the UK consumer's wallet came from consumer goods outfit PZ Cussons, which said trading conditions in the UK remain challenging. Elsewhere in Europe, trading conditions in Greece and Poland have also been challenging, but the picture is a lot rosier in Asia, which "continues to perform strongly," the group said, even though the Australian consumer environment has got tighter. As a whole, the group has been trading broadly in line with management expectations in 2011, despite margin pressures from burgeoning raw material costs. ---jh