Chinese footwear retailer Belle reports 19.7 pct fall in H1 profit

Chinese footwear retailer Belle International Holdings reported a 19.7 percent fall in first-half net profit on Monday amid a tough retail climate and intensifying online competition.

Net profit fell to 1.73 billion yuan ($251.07 million) for the six months to August 31 from 2.16 billion a year earlier, said the firm, which distributes footwear and sportswear brands including Nike, Adidas, Puma and Converse.

Revenue rose to 19.53 billion yuan from 19.36 billion.

"The environment for the group's footwear business is currently full of challenges. Changes in foot traffic across various retail channels as well as shifting style preferences of consumers are placing structural pressure on the fashion footwear business of the group," Belle said in a filing to the Hong Kong bourse.

"Continued weakness in consumer sentiment also becomes a real constraint for the footwear business," it said.

Belle had said in September that its footwear business fell 10 percent in its second quarter, while sportswear and apparel grew 6 percent.

It operated a total 20,600 retails outlets, comprising 13,384 footwear and 7,216 sportswear and apparel outlets, as of the end of August, up from 20,228 outlets a year earlier.

Shares in Belle have fallen 4.1 percent this year, against a 7.7 percent rise in the benchmark Hang Seng Index.