Zara owner posts rising profit despite Trump trade war

Zara owner Inditex, the world's biggest fashion retailer, reported on Wednesday a slight rise in net profit in its first quarter despite uncertainty over US President Donald Trump's trade war.

The Spanish group -- whose other brands include Massimo Dutti, Bershka and Pull&Bear -- posted a profit after tax of 1.3 billion euros ($1.1 billion) for the three-month period ending April 30, up 0.8 percent from a year ago.

It was a new record for the first quarter and in line with the average forecast by analysts surveyed by the FactSet financial data firm.

But the pace was slower than that which Inditex has been used to in recent years since the end of the Covid crisis.

Sales grew 1.5 percent to 8.27 billion euros over the same period, which is typically a slower time of the year for the sector. The figure was lower than the 8.37 billion euros forecast by FactSet.

"Inditex maintained a solid operational performance led by the creativity of our teams and the strong execution of the fully integrated business model," the company said in a statement.

Countries and companies around the world have had to navigate Trump's tariffs onslaught, which he launched on April 2.

The US president has imposed 10 percent tariffs on goods imported from around the world, and threatened to hit the European Union and dozens of other countries with even higher duties in July.

His trade war has raised concerns that it could spark a global recession.

Nevertheless, Inditex maintained a positive outlook, saying: "We see strong growth opportunities."