Kingfisher trying everything including the kitchen sink

While adjusted operating profit was flat at £686m, this was marginally ahead of consensus expectations, albeit partly hobbled by £46m in adverse foreign-exchange movements on the translation of non-sterling retail profits. The reported figure was also impacted by £99m-worth of exceptional items after a £305m one-off charge relating to changes at B&Q, including store closures, was partially offset by profit from the sale of its 70 per cent stake in B&Q China and a partial tax rebate.

The star of the show was the UK retail business, where profit rose 18 per cent. Screwfix pulled most of the weight here, with sales up 15 per cent on a like-for-like basis and pushing through the £1bn mark for the first time. Strong trading at its specialist trade desks helped, as did mobile orders, which doubled. B&Q saw sales rise 1.9 per cent on a like-for-like basis to £3.8bn, but gross margins were down, reflecting clearance sales related to the store closures.

In France, where it operates the Castorama and Brico Dépôt brands, retail profit fell 1.6 per cent. Chief financial officer Karen Witts said buildings, permits and housing starts had turned positive for the first time in four years in France during the final quarter, but these were "just green shoots", so it's worth waiting to see if positive momentum continues.

Analysts at Credit Suisse expect adjusted pre-tax profit of £688m for the year ending January 2017, leading to EPS of 22.3p compared with £682m and 22.1p in FY2016.