Laura Ashley shares rise as demand thrives

Higher demand for Laura Ashley's fabrics and furnishings helped the retailer to raise its profit expectations for the year today.

Shares rose almost 9% to 18.5p after Laura Ashley said its like-for-like sales were up 2.7% in the five months to December 11.

"Despite the current economic uncertainty and adverse weather conditions in the UK, we remain confident that full-year trading will be ahead of the Board's expectations," the company said.

Online sales were 28.7% higher than the same time last year. But the group's bricks and mortar presence shrank this year, when it closed 12 stores and opened only two.

Numis Securities raised its profits forecast for Laura Ashley from £14.4 million to £15.8 million for the year to the end of January.

Analyst Andrew Wade said: "With the key Christmas trading weeks still to come we see further scope for upgrades."