Otherwise, the figures from the major countries reflect the coronavirus crisis: -14.7 per cent in Great Britain and Ireland (B&Q: -22.1 per cent), -42.0 per cent (constant currency) in France (Castorama -44.0 per cent, Brico Dépôt -39.8 per cent).
It's a mixed picture among the remaining expansion countries: Poland -6.0 per cent, Romania +11.2 per cent - reports here were from January to March -, Spain and Portugal -47.2 per cent, Russia - also from January to March - -2.9 per cent.
In a statement, CEO Thierry Garnier emphasised that they had concentrated on clear priorities: "to provide support to the communities we serve, to fulfil our obligations to colleagues as a responsible employer, to our customers as a retailer of essential goods, and to protect our business for the long term."
In general, the group has noticed a strong e-commerce growth (up to fourfold growth since mid-March) during the crisis. In the meantime, there was a phased reopening of stores in the UK and France in the second half of April. As a result, Kingfisher talks of improving the relative sales trend, the group like-for-like sales moved from -74.0 per cent in first week of April to +2.7 per cent in first week of May.