The FTSE 100 closed lower on Wednesday after the BoE reported inflation of 10.1%, down from 10.4% in the previous month, but remaining in double digits.

Investors have remained skeptical on Thursday morning, with the FTSE 100 down 0.15%. As for stocks, Jet2 provided its trading update, Dunelm reported its third quarter results and WH Smith reported its interims.

Jet2

Jet2’s trading update sees the board now expect Group profit for the year ended 31 March to be between £387m and £392m.

• The airlines on sale seat capacity for summer 2023 is currently 7.2% higher than summer 2022 at 15.26m seats.
• The group stated forward bookings remain encouraging and average load factors for summer 2023 are up 0.7ppts YoY.
• The Group will announce its Preliminary Results for the year ended 31 March 2023 on 6 July 2023 at which point it will provide a fuller outlook for the all-important Summer 2023 trading period.

Dunelm

Dunelm, a homewares retailer reported its third quarter trading update for the 13-week period ended 1 April 2023. “We are seeing strong momentum in the business as customers continue to appreciate the quality and value across the Dunelm range, despite a challenging trading backdrop,” said Nick Wilkinson, Chief Executive Officer.

• Total sales grew 6% to £423m and yeat-to-date sales up 5%.
• Customers continue to respond well to its proposition, both online and in stores.
• The retailers FY23 profit-before-tax expectations remain unchanged.

WH Smith

WH Smith reported its interim results for the six months ended 28 February. Carl Cowling, Group Chief Executive: “We have seen a strong performance in the first half of the year further strengthening our confidence in the prospects of our global travel business.”

• Reported a strong first half performance with revenue up 41% to £859m.
• Headline profit before tax of £45m was above the £14m in 2022.
• The group saw strong momentum across its travel business as passenger numbers recover.
• Travel trading profit grew to £47m from £10m in 2022.