Mr Price Slides as Profit Growth Slows on Weaker Consumer Spend

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa — Mr Price Group Ltd., a South African clothing and household goods retailer, said first-half profit and sales rose at a slower pace than a year earlier as South African consumer spending remained muted amid high unemployment and an economic slowdown.

Net income advanced 17 percent to 1.08 billion rand ($76 million) in the six months through Sept. 26, the Durban-based company said in a statement on Wednesday. That compares to a 23 percent increase in the same period a year earlier.

“The economy is not in good shape and consumer confidence is understandably low,” Chief Executive Officer Stuart Bird said in the statement. While the company’s “resilient fashion-value model is built to withstand these conditions,” the environment for retailers could deteriorate further, he said.

Mr Price shares declined 4.6 percent, the most since Sept. 1, to 204.12 rand as of 4 p.m. in Johannesburg, bringing the loss this year to 13 percent. That values the retailer at 54 billion rand.

The company said on Sept. 1 that “some poor fashion calls” had curbed sales, which climbed 9 percent to 9.03 billion rand in the six-month period, compared with 15 percent growth a year earlier.

By Janice Kew; editors: Matthew Boyle, John Bowker.