H&M sales dampened by second Covid-19 wave

H&M said its net sales were down by 10% year-on-year in the fourth quarter, as a direct result of the coronavirus pandemic’s second wave. Shares ticked 0.14% lower on Tuesday morning in Stockholm.

The world’s second-largest global clothing retailer said the first wave of the pandemic hit it the hardest, impacting its Q2 results due to “extensive social restrictions involving temporary store closures and large drops in customer footfall to physical stores.”

It managed to gain some momentum in the third quarter, but “the recovery transitioned into a new slowdown as a result of the pandemic’s second wave.”

For the 2020 financial year, net sales decreased by 18%.

The group’s net sales were 52.5bn Swedish crowns ($6.2bn, £4.7bn) in Q4, down from 61.7bn Swedish crowns a year earlier.

Its full-year report for the 2020 financial year will be published 29 January 2021.

Meanwhile, rival Inditex, owner of Zara, posted a 14% fall in sales in the three months from August to October.