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Clothing brand Uniqlo’s Japanese owner reported a record half-year profit on Thursday, even as Covid-19 lockdowns in China hampered sales in its biggest overseas market.
Fast Retailing Co said operating profit climbed 18 percent to 189 billion yen ($1.51 billion) in the six months through February from a year earlier.
The results were buoyed by sales growth in North America, Europe, and other parts of Asia, while revenue and profit declined in China.
Fast Retailing is a bellwether for how major global retailers are being impacted by Covid-related shutdowns in China, one of the biggest growth markets for many Western brands.
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The retailer said it expects revenue declines and a large drop in profits in its Greater China segment in the second half and for the whole of fiscal 2022.
The company maintained its full-year profit forecast at 270 billion yen. That compares with a consensus forecast for annual profit to total 278 billion yen, according to a Refinitiv poll of 11 analysts.
By Rocky Swift; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman
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