Industria de Diseno Textil SA, the owner of Zara known as Inditex, posted higher profit and sales for the first half, after positive online sales in the second quarter as customers turned to spring and summer collections.
The Spanish fashion giant
ITX,
which also owns Bershka, Massimo Dutti and Pull&Bear, said Wednesday that net profit for the six months ended July 31 surged to 1.79 billion euros ($1.78 billion) from EUR1.27 billion last year.
Sales climbed to EUR14.85 billion from EUR11.94 billion. Store and online sales in constant currency between Aug. 1 and Sept. 11 rose 11% versus the record period last year.
Inditex said it expects online sales to exceed 30% of total sales by 2024.
Earnings before interest and taxes rose to EUR2.43 billion in the first half from EUR1.69 billion, while earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization increased to EUR4.03 billion from EUR3.10 billion.
For the year, Inditex expects a stable gross margin, plus or minus 50 basis points, as well as a positive 0.5% currency effect on sales.
Write to Mauro Orru at mauro.orru@wsj.com; @MauroOrru94