Electrocomponents' sales surge in second half

Sales at Electrocomponents surged considerably higher in the four months to the end of January, as France returned to growth and North America accelerated, though the UK market remains tough.Sales growth was up 5%, compared with 3% in the company's first half, offsetting an estimated £2m hit to pre-tax profits from one less trading day.Growth was particularly strong in eCommerce sales, international revenue and in North America, while European performance also improved thanks to French return to growth.Meanwhile, UK sales were down 2%, in line with first half results as the market remains "tough" and management continues to drive forward with its plan to improve performance.Gross margin was 1.3% lower compared to the previous year, a result of foreign exchange and mix impacts as it sees faster growth in its lower margin products and regions.However, Electrocomponents said it saw improvement on this front in January, after taking actions to improve gross margins."We are confident that our strategy will enable us to progressively grow our market share and improve our financial performance over the medium term," said chief executive Ian Mason in a statement.