LONDON: Kingfisher, Europe's biggest home-improvements retailer, said on Thursday that annual net profits jumped by 30 percent on strong sales at its Castorama and Brico Depot stores in France.
Profit after tax increased by almost a third to £640 million (771 million euros, $1.01 billion) in the 12 months to late January, compared with £494 million in 2010/11, Kingfisher said in a results statement.
Kingfisher, which also owns the B&Q home-improvements chain in Britain, added that sales grew 3.6 percent in the reporting period to £10.831 billion, as strong growth in France offset a flat performance in Britain and Ireland.
"I am pleased we have delivered another year of strong profit growth, our third such year in a row," chief executive Ian Cheshire said in the statement.
"Whilst the immediate economic outlook remains uncertain, we face the future in robust shape," he added. Kingfisher said that during 2012/13, it planned to open 67 new stores, including 50 in Britain.
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