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Shares in UK bakery chain Greggs fell sharply on Wednesday after it warned profits this year may be lower than in 2024 driven by a heatwave that increased demand for cold drinks but reduced overall footfall.
The maker of pasties and sausage rolls reported a 2.6 per cent increase in like-for-like sales in the first half of the year, compared with a 2.9 per cent rise in the first 20 weeks and noted it had been affected by “very high temperatures”. Its shares fell 14 per cent on the news.
The profit warning comes after Greggs’ chief executive Roisin Currie said in May that she was confident a sales boost from warm spring weather would continue.
But an ongoing heatwave in the UK and much of Europe, which has pushed temperatures above 30C, has meant fewer people outside and fewer customers.
This is a developing story
