Slump in profits at Kingfisher

Kingfisher has reported a fall in pre-tax profits of 64.2 per cent to £ 231.8 mio (€ 339.6 mio) for the year to January 2006. Profits after tax are put at £ 139.0 mio (€ 203.6 mio), equivalent to a fall of 68.9 per cent. The poor result is being attributed chiefly to the difficult market situation in the UK, where profits at B&Q tumbled by 50.4 per cent. Sales rose during the year by 4.7 per cent (3.9 per cent in constant currency) to £ 8.010 bn (€ 11.73 bn).