Primark confirmes 2.7 percent like-for-like sales decline in Christmas quarter

Associated British Foods (ABF) today released its finalized revenue report for the 16-week period ending January 3, 2026, confirming that its retail powerhouse, Primark, performed in alignment with the cautionary estimates issued on January 8, 2026. Like-for-like sales at Primark clothing business fell 2.7 percent during the Christmas quarter.

While the like-for-like sales decline met expectations, the formal update included slight adjustments to total revenue performance. Total retail revenue increased by 4.2 percent (at actual currency), marginally outperforming the 4 percent estimate provided earlier this month to 3,502 million pounds (4,701 million dollars).

The finalised figures highlight a contrast between Primark's domestic success and ongoing challenges in international markets.

The UK market remains a primary growth engine, delivering 3 percent total sales growth and 1.7 percent like-for-like sales growth. Management attributed this resilience to strategic investments in digital customer engagement, including the expansion of Click & Collect, and a particularly strong performance in womenswear.

Trading in the continental Europe remained weak, with like-for-like sales declining by 5.7 percent. This downturn is largely due to subdued consumer confidence and the fact that performance-improvement initiatives—successful in the UK—are only recently being implemented in European territories.

Expansion continues to drive high-level growth in the US, which saw a 12 percent increase in total sales. This was supported by the group’s broader store roll-out programme, which contributed approximately 4 percent to Primark’s overall global sales growth during the period.

Despite the modest sales gains, ABF reiterated that profitability has been tempered by the need for significantly increased markdowns to manage inventory levels effectively in a volatile environment. Consequently, the adjusted operating profit margin for the full year is projected to remain at approximately 10 percent, mirroring the performance of the first half.