Marks & Spencer rallies after update

Shares in FTSE 250 supermarket group Marks & Spencer (LON:MKS) climbed by 5.04% to 96.64p (as of 14:50 GMT) despite it reporting a 15.8% drop in group revenues for the half year ended 26th September. The company fell to a pre-tax loss for the period but the Ocado partnership grew rapidly and food saw good adjusted performance.

CEO Steve Rowe commented: “In a year when it has become impossible to forecast with any degree of accuracy, our performance has been much more robust than at first seemed possible. This reflects the resilience of our business and the incredible efforts of my M&S colleagues who have been quite simply outstanding. But out of adversity comes opportunity and, through our Never the Same Again programme, we have brought forward three years change in one to become a leaner, faster and more digital business. From launching M&S Food online with Ocado to establishing an integrated online business division ‘MS2’ to step-change growth, we are taking the right actions to come through the crisis stronger and set up to win in the new world“.