UK's JD Sports Confident on Forecasts after First-half Beat

A logo is seen outside the newly renovated JD Sports store at Westfield Stratford City in London, Britain, July 30, 2024. REUTERS/Hollie Adams/File Photo
A logo is seen outside the newly renovated JD Sports store at Westfield Stratford City in London, Britain, July 30, 2024. REUTERS/Hollie Adams/File Photo
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UK's JD Sports Confident on Forecasts after First-half Beat

A logo is seen outside the newly renovated JD Sports store at Westfield Stratford City in London, Britain, July 30, 2024. REUTERS/Hollie Adams/File Photo
A logo is seen outside the newly renovated JD Sports store at Westfield Stratford City in London, Britain, July 30, 2024. REUTERS/Hollie Adams/File Photo

British sportswear retailer JD Sports Fashion beat a consensus forecast for first-half profit and said it was on track to meet annual guidance, showing its multi-brand strategy working at a time when Nike is struggling.
The FTSE 100-listed group, which sells Nike, Adidas, On, HOKA and other brands in Britain, Europe and the United States, said on Wednesday it would meet targets, despite what it called a competitive and promotional marketplace.
Nike on Tuesday posted disappointing quarterly sales growth and
warned
its holiday season would likely to be filled with discounts.
For the 26 weeks to Aug. 3, JD Sports posted adjusted pretax profit of 405.6 million pounds ($538.35 million), ahead of analyst expectations of 384 million pounds.
"Our success is a direct reflection of the strength and agility of our global, multi-brand strategy, which allows us to adapt swiftly to fast-changing industry trends across the world," Reuters quoted Chief Executive Regis Schultz as saying in a statement.
The group also reiterated its guidance for annual profit of between 955 million pounds and 1.035 billion pounds.



Sources: Shein Weighs Sale of Less Than 10% of Company in London IPO

A mannequin with a Shein sign stands in an office of a lingerie maker at WeMet Industrial Park, in Guanyun county of Lianyungang, Jiangsu province, China November 25, 2024. REUTERS/Florence Lo
A mannequin with a Shein sign stands in an office of a lingerie maker at WeMet Industrial Park, in Guanyun county of Lianyungang, Jiangsu province, China November 25, 2024. REUTERS/Florence Lo
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Sources: Shein Weighs Sale of Less Than 10% of Company in London IPO

A mannequin with a Shein sign stands in an office of a lingerie maker at WeMet Industrial Park, in Guanyun county of Lianyungang, Jiangsu province, China November 25, 2024. REUTERS/Florence Lo
A mannequin with a Shein sign stands in an office of a lingerie maker at WeMet Industrial Park, in Guanyun county of Lianyungang, Jiangsu province, China November 25, 2024. REUTERS/Florence Lo

Fast fashion retailer Shein is considering asking UK regulators to waive listing rules that require at least 10% of its shares to be sold to the public in its planned London flotation, two people with knowledge of the matter said.
The company is exploring this option to facilitate its IPO, one of the people said, according to Reuters.
If granted, it would likely be the first time that a company in London has been allowed to list below the recent 10% rule.
Singapore-headquartered Shein, which sells $5 tops and $10 dresses mostly made in China, in June filed confidentially with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) for a London listing.
However, Britain's financial regulator is taking longer than usual to approve its application, Reuters reported last week.
The people declined to be identified as they were not authorized to speak to the media.
Shein declined to comment.
Shein was valued at $66 billion in a fundraising round last year. A 10% flotation at that valuation would make the IPO worth $6.6 billion. The biggest European IPO this year was perfume and fashion company Puig's $2.9 billion deal, according to Dealogic.
The current valuation of Shein and how much it is looking to raise via the London listing was not immediately known.
London changed its listing rules in 2021 to boost the attractiveness of the venue for companies. It cut the proportion of shares an issuer is required to float to 10% from 25%, reducing potential barriers for large IPOs, the FCA said at the time.
In July, Britain ushered in the biggest reform of company listing rules in more than three decades to help it compete more effectively with New York and the European Union for new issuers.
Shein began to explore a listing on the London Stock Exchange early this year, Reuters reported in May, citing sources. The China-founded company's original plan to list in New York was derailed after opposition from US lawmakers.
Shein is also waiting for China's securities regulator to approve its plans for a London IPO, Reuters previously reported. Its revenues are expected to hit $50 billion this year, up 55% from 2023, according to Coresight Research.