Investors eyeing steady performance at WH Smith

0 The group’s travel sites have been performing better than its traditional high street shops Retailer WH Smith will reveal if sales at airports and railway stations have continued to offset falling high street trade when it updates on trading this week.

The group saw like-for-like sales fall 3 per cent at its main store estate in the six months to 28 February as it came up against tough comparatives from a year earlier amid booming demand for adult colouring-in books.

But sales jumped 5 per cent in the travel division, with air passenger traffic in particu- lar holding up well despite the pound’s slide, helping earnings in the division lift 11 per cent to £39 million. This helped half-year profits rise 4 per cent to £83m.

Analysts at Numis said thirdquarter figures may be helped as comparatives from a year earlier become easier.

WH Smith has seen the “colour therapy” trend wane in recent months but it said at the half-year stage that this was being offset by the popularity of spoof humour books and strong stationery sales.