Carpetright profit slides

Carpet and floor coverings retailer Carpetright rolled out a 28% drop in first half profit as sales continued to be dogged by poor consumer demand and the sluggish housing market.Underlying pre-tax profit fell to £10m for the 26 weeks ended 30 October 2010from £13.9m the year before. Revenue fell to £248m from £258m.Like-for-like sales fell 6.1% during the six month period. Commenting on the results, chairman and chief executive Lord Harris of Peckham said, "The economic and consumer environment remained challenging in the first half. Against this backdrop, the group continued to trade profitably and generate net cash."Net debt was reduced by £12.8m to £58.5m during the first half.He added, "Whilst we remain cautious about the retail market in the balance of the financial year and throughout 2011, the Board has confidence that the group is well positioned to deliver future sales growth when consumer demand in our sector improves."The interim dividend has been maintained at 8p.