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Strong Christmas boosts Burberry
LONDON, England (Reuters) -- Fashion group Burberry posted on Monday better than expected sales figures for the third quarter as the renowned British brand benefits from store openings and a strong Christmas season. Retail sales for the November to September quarter grew 32 percent on an underlying basis -- analysts were tipping growth of around 25 percent -- as new store openings and strong holiday turnover bolstered the top line. Retail operations accounted for approximately 63 percent of total revenue. Burberry said it had seen "outstanding'' growth in its British and U.S. markets, and the company's seven new stores -- including flagship outlets in New York and London -- began to make a revenue contribution during the period. Wholesale revenues, one of the few question marks surrounding the six month interims, were broadly unchanged on an actual and underlying basis (excluding currency movements and acquisitions). Burberry said it anticipated high single-digit sales growth for the Spring/Summer 2003 season. Licencing revenues increased by nine percent on the quarter, and total revenues increased by 33 percent. "The company's strong performance in the third quarter reflects the strength of the Burberry brand and continued execution of our key growth initiatives by product, channel and region,'' CEO Rose Marie Bravo said in a statement. "These results confirm that the business remains on track to deliver on the bjectives we set at the time of the initial public offering,'' she added'' Since their stock market debut in July last year, Burberry shares have outperformed the DJ Stoxx consumer cyclicals index by 13 percent. The share closed at 216 pence on Friday and was expected to make a firm start on Monday.
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