Primark-owner Associated British Foods PLC (LSE:ABF) reported a 20% jump in revenue in the 16 weeks to 7 January 2023 compared to a year earlier, with full-year guidance unchanged.
Revenue grew to £6.69bn compared to £5.56bn, with sales at Primark contributing to nearly half of the total income with £3.14bn sales, 18% greater than a year earlier.
Total food revenues for the FTSE 100 company also grew by 23% to £3.55bn.
In its retail arm, Primark trading was ahead of expectations with the division reporting a strong Christmas trading period as footfall recovered in the UK and Eurozone.
ABF said Primark's click-and-collect service has seen its website traffic increase by 85% since last year and has recently been launched in Ireland, with further rollouts coming in Germany, Spain and the US.
Ten new Primark stores were opened in the trading period, with a further 17 expected by the end of the financial year, ABF said.
Trading in the current year has been encouraging, although ABF said macroeconomic headwinds may weigh on consumer spending.
In food, profits in its sugar business are expected to be lower as a result of reduced production due to adverse weather.
ABF also expects some “erosion of adjusted operating profit margin” in its grocery business as inflation continues to run ahead of pricing.
Looking ahead, the group said it continues to encounter significant cost pressures, although inflation is becoming less volatile, and some commodity costs have declined.
Consumer spending, it said, has also proven to be more resilient in this trading period than anticipated at the start of the financial year.