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Reuters
Published
Jan 17, 2017
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South Africa's Mr Price posts drop in Q3 sales on clothing markdowns

By
Reuters
Published
Jan 17, 2017

South Africa's Mr Price reported lower third-quarter sales on Tuesday, as weak economic growth and tough competition forced the no-frills retailer to sell its clothing at lower prices.




The brand had total retail sales of 6.1 billion rand for the three months to end-December, 0.5 percent lower than the corresponding period in 2015. The difficult trading environment has extended into the second half of the year, Mr Price said in a statement, and sales by the firm's apparel division down 1.9 percent and 4.1 lower when measured against comparable stores.

Price noted that higher promotional markdowns were required, particularly in the apparel division.

"Poor economic growth, low levels of consumer confidence and higher selling prices driven by a weak and volatile exchange rate has resulted in a very competitive retail environment, with persisting high levels of price discounting and promotional activity," the firm said.

Other South African clothing retailers Woolworths Holdings and Truworths International last week flagged a drop in half-year profit.

"Looking ahead, any improvement in economic growth and consumer health is likely to be gradual," Mr Price said.

 

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