Kingfisher on course to beat expectations

The price of shares in FTSE 100 retail firm Kingfisher (LON:KGF) climbed by 11.42% to 250.80p (as of 11:20 BST) after the firm reported a strong rebound in demand during the second quarter. The company said that like-for-like sales during the second quarter to 18th July had risen by 21.6%, although they were still down on a year to date basis. Due to cost reduction measures taken by the business, management anticipates that adjusted pre-tax profits for the six months ending 31st July will be ahead of expectations.

However, visibility over the next few months remains low and the group is still not providing specific guidance for the full financial year.