John Lewis Profits All But Wiped Out Amid Turbulence On The High Street telegraph.co.uk

The John Lewis Partnership’s profits were all but wiped out in the first half of its financial year among tough competition and rising costs that have plagued Britain’s high streets.

Profits before tax and exceptional items plunged 99pc to just £1.2m in the six months to July 28, despite a 1.5pc uptick in revenues to £4.9bn.

The partnership, which owns Waitrose as well as its eponymous department store chain, said it was struggling to forecast its financial performance for the rest of the year due to uncertainty over the economy and Brexit but that it expected profits to be “substantially lower” than last year.

The slide came mostly due to problems in the company’s department stores, which slumped.