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Deactivate. Piano meter debugger. Data returned from the Piano 'meterActive/meterExpired' callback event. B&Q reveals plunge in sales. By Darren SladeBusiness editor. B&Q saw sales plunge in the first quarter of 2020. SALES at Hampshire-based B&Q plunged by more than a fifth in three months. Sales in the UK and Ireland fell by 21.8 per cent in the quarter that ended on April 30, parent company Kingfisher said. But it added that sales had risen 18.9 per cent in the first week of May after the Chandlers Ford-based DIY giant reopened its stores. Sales across the wider Kingfisher group – including its Castorama and Brico Depot chains in France – were also badly hit by lockdowns in place across Europe, with total sales down by a quarter in the three months to April 30. Kingfisher said 288 of its 289 B&Q stores are now open in the UK and Ireland, while its 683-strong Screwfix arm is operating on a click-and-collect basis only. Kingfisher chief executive Thierry Garnier said: “Having initially closed our stores in France and the UK, we have rapidly adapted how we operate to meet the essential needs of our customers safely during lockdown. “We started by transforming our operations to meet a material increase in online transactions through our click-and-collect and home delivery services. “We reconfigured our retail space and processes, allowing a phased and safe reopening of stores whilst preserving the social distancing and other health and safety protocols that are likely to be with us for some time.”. Sorry, an error occurred. Sign in or register leave a comment or rate a comment. Get involved with the news in your community. Loss of Carnival cruise jobs will have "very big" impact across Southampton. Southampton 'among least prepared cities' for flexible working. B&Q reveals plunge in sales. Cruise line giant Carnival plans "large number of redundancies" because of coronavirus lockdown. Small businesses urged to enter the South Coast Business Awards. Luxury yacht builder set to axe 460 jobs. Jobs at risk at Hampshire engineering firm. 'It is a blow for the city': Future of Nuffield Southampton Theatres hangs in the balance. Ferry service hit by lockdown launches Crowdfunding campaign in bid to stay afloat. This website and associated newspapers adhere to the Independent Press Standards Organisation's Editors' Code of Practice. If you have a complaint about the editorial content which relates to inaccuracy or intrusion, then please contact the editor here. If you are dissatisfied with the response provided you can contact IPSO here.

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FTSE 250 movers: Kingfisher surges on Q1 update; Aston Martin retreats. (Sharecast News) - London's FTSE 250 was down 0.6% at 6,168.73 in afternoon trade on Tuesday.B&Q and Screwfix owner Kingfisher surged as it posted a decline in first-quarter sales as it took a hit from the coronavirus lockdown but said sales improved at the start of May as stores reopened. Sales fell 24% at constant currency to ?2.2bn, with like-for-like sales down 24.8%.Still, in the first week of May, sales were up 2.7% compared to a 74% slump in the first week of April, helped by store reopenings.Kingfisher was also boosted by an upgrade to 'overweight' from 'equalweight' at Morgan Stanley, as was Marks & Spencer. "Given the essential nature of Serco's services, we anticipate it will quickly revert to 'business as usual' once restrictions are eased," it said.Going the other way, Aston Martin lost ground as Peel Hunt downgraded its rating on shares of the luxury car maker to 'reduce' from 'hold' ahead of its first-quarter results on Wednesday.The broker said it has updated its forecasts to reflect the recent rights issue and placing and also had a "first stab" at the potential impact of Covid-19 on performance this year.Hammerson fell as FTSE 100 peer Land Securities slid after pulling its final dividend as full-year losses widened and asset values fell.FTSE 250 - RisersKingfisher (KGF) 180.80p 11.30%Pollen Street Secured Lending (PSSL) 654.00p 6.17%PZ Cussons (PZC) 188.60p 5.36%Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 92.16p 5.25%Serco Group (SRP) 135.60p 4.55%TP ICAP (TCAP) 371.60p 4.09%PayPoint (PAY) 774.00p 4.03%Wizz Air Holdings (WIZZ) 2,792.00p 3.64%Softcat (SCT) 1,216.00p 3.49%Fisher (James) & Sons (FSJ) 1,264.00p 3.10%FTSE 250 - FallersHyve Group (HYVE) 13.64p -16.83%Bakkavor Group (BAKK) 71.20p -11.00%Hammerson (HMSO) 47.61p -8.69%Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings (AML) 39.74p -7.80%Capita (CPI) 32.30p -7.10%Crest Nicholson Holdings (CRST) 226.00p -7.07%Convatec Group (CTEC) 204.60p -6.66%Hiscox Limited (DI) (HSX) 732.20p -6.56%Vistry Group (VTY) 723.00p -6.35%Beazley (BEZ) 358.60p -6.27%.

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Kingfisher plc with EPIC/TICKER (LON:KGF) had its stock rating noted as ‘Reiterates’ with the recommendation being set at ‘NEUTRAL’ this morning by analysts at Credit Suisse. Kingfisher plc are listed in the Consumer Services sector within UK Main Market. This would imply the analyst believes there is now a potential upside of 7.1% from the opening price of 168 GBX. Kingfisher plc has a 50 day moving average of 156.50 GBX and a 200 day moving average of 197.65.

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DIY shops were allowed to remain open throughout the UK lockdown as they have been deemed essential, but Kingfisher initially closed all its stores, allowing a click and collect and home delivery service only. Chief executive Thierry Garnier said: “Having initially closed our stores in France and the UK, we have rapidly adapted how we operate to meet the essential needs of our customers safely during lockdown. Though Screwfix has fared better throughout the lockdown, with sales down by just 4.7% over the first quarter to April 30.Screwfix has fared better (Rui Vieira/PA). And online sales have rocketed across the group, rising 59% in March and as much as 251.7% in April. Kingfisher said it furloughed around 50% of total group workforce initially, though it added this is reducing as stores in the UK and France reopen.

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DIY group Kingfisher sees sales turn positive as lockdowns ease. (Reuters) - Home improvement group Kingfisher (KGF.L) said underlying sales turned positive in the first week of May as more of its stores re-opened from coronavirus lockdowns, giving it more confidence for the future. Kingfisher, which owns B&Q in Britain and Castorama in France, said that like-for-like sales in the first week of May grew 2.7%, a turnaround compared to the three months to the end of April when they dropped 24.8% after many shops shut. The group said there had been a phased re-opening of its UK and French stores in the second half of April and now 631 of its total 1,370 stores across Europe were open, and most of those not open to the public were offering click and collect.

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LONDON, May 12 (Reuters) - Home improvement group Kingfisher said sales in the three months to the end of April fell by a quarter due to coronavirus-related disruption, but store re-openings meant it was seeing an improving trend at the beginning of May. Kingfisher, which owns B&Q in Britain and Castorama in France, said on Tuesday that it was focused on expanding its liquidity position and had access to 2 billion pounds ($2.46 billion) by May 8. For the three months ended April, the group said total underlying sales were down 24.8%, after many of its stores across Europe closed during lockdowns associated with the coronavirus pandemic. ($1 = 0.8121 pounds) (Reporting by Sarah Young, editing by James Davey).

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The closures are to slow the spread of the deadly coronavirus and relieve pressure on the NHS. But many essential shops also ended up closing over fears continuing to operate would put staff and customers at risk. The retailer offers free delivery on orders over £20. If your total order amount is less, you'll have to pay from £3.95 for the trouble. On the first weekend it reopened, hundreds of shoppers were spotted venturing out during lockdown to queue to get in but they appeared to be abiding by rules - keeping at least two metres apart. It was one of the few retailers to temporarily stop online trading as well as close its stores, largely due to the shut down of its warehouses and distribution centres over staff safety concerns. But following a consultation with workers, a string of new safety measures have been put in place including one-way systems and new walkways at its warehouses.

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The DIY retailer has gradually reopened its 288 UK stores over the past two weeks, with its last remaining sites opening their doors to the public on Thursday. Hardware stores are among retailers listed by the Government as essential stores which could remain open through the lockdown. However, the retailer shut its sites temporarily in order to ensure adequate safety measures could be put in place, before gradually reopening sites. B&Q said it is “strictly limiting the number of customers in store at any one time” and has also installed other safety measures, such as sanitation stations for trolleys. “Whether shopping in our stores or online, we continue to ask all our customers to follow the Government’s social distancing guidelines and to shop responsibly only when they need to.”.

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DIY chains B&Q, Homebase and Wickes have reopened a vast number of stores after closing in March due to the coronavirus outbreak. Damian McGloughlin, chief executive officer at Homebase, said: “We have taken this time to carefully review and make a large number of changes to our operations in preparation for a safe, phased reopening, in line with Government guidance on social distancing. B&Q, which was one of the first to reopen stores, said on Wednesday, April 29, that it is now welcoming customers to 285 of its outlets. “We’re confident that our strict social distancing measures keep customers and colleagues safe while helping homes and gardens, as well as people’s wellbeing, to be maintained.”. What have Wickes said?

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DIY retailers B&Q, Homebase and Wickes have reopened a raft of stores after closing their doors in the face of the coronavirus outbreak. On Wednesday, Homebase said it had reopened another 50 sites following a successful trial across 20 stores which it opened last week. Damian McGloughlin, chief executive officer at Homebase, said: “We have taken this time to carefully review and make a large number of changes to our operations in preparation for a safe, phased reopening, in line with Government guidance on social distancing. “It has taken a tremendous amount of hard work and commitment from our teams across all parts of the business to ensure we are ready to safely welcome customers back through our doors.

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