UPDATE 1-Topps Tiles buoyed by Britain's DIY boom

(Adds details)

LONDON, Aug 13 (Reuters) - British tile retailer Topps Tiles
said on Thursday it would make a full-year profit after
a 15.5% year-on-year jump in same store sales over the six weeks
to August 8, sending its shares sharply higher.

Britons, with time on their hands during the pandemic as
they stay at home, have been tackling more do-it-yourself (DIY)
projects.

Topps Tiles said home improvement demand had been strong
across the period, with DIY business increasing sharply and
trade customer activity recovering steadily from April lows.

It said that while online sales had moderated from the peaks
seen in April and May they remained above previous levels.

Shares in Topps were up 13.5% at 0706 GMT, paring 2020
losses to 32%.

Last month B&Q and Screwfix owner Kingfisher
reported a 22% jump in second-quarter same store sales.

Topps' stores were closed from March 23 when Britain went on
coronavirus lockdown, though its online business remained in
operation. The stores started reopening from mid-April and all
are now open.

"Our retail performance over the last six weeks, combined
with an order bay which is significantly ahead of the prior
year, means that the board now expects that the group will
generate a modest level of adjusted profit before tax for the 52
weeks ended 26 September," Topps said.

Analysts at Liberum raised their forecast to a profit of 2.2
million pounds ($2.9 million) from a loss of 4.3 million
previously.

Topps said it had about 9 million pounds of net cash and
access to 58 million pounds of finance.

It said, however, that uncertainty related to COVID-19
persisted and it was unusually difficult to assess the outlook
beyond the short term.
($1 = 0.7656 pounds)
(Reporting by James Davey, Editing by Paul Sandle)