Argos sales down as game fans play safe
The owner of the Argos chain has revealed a bigger-than-expected slump in sales after seeing weaker demand for video games and televisions.
Home Retail Group said Argos sales were down 8.1 per cent, leading to a 5.2 per cent drop in revenues to 889m in the 13 weeks to May 29.
It said consumers had been reluctant to spend, with the video games market badly hit and television sales down despite the World Cup.
Analyst Freddie George of Seymour Pierce stockbrokers, said the Argos figures were "disappointing and quite a lot worse than expected".
Shares were 5 per cent down yesterday.