Li Ning, the Chinese sportswear retailer that is one of the mainland’s best known homegrown brands, has warned that it may post a full-year loss because of inventory overhang and slowing domestic economic growth, write Patti Waldmeir and Enid Tsui.
Its shares fell 3.8 per cent in Hong Kong yesterday, compounding a 4.5 per cent fall on Wednesday, as investors appeared to be losing patience with assurances that it had found a way to reverse the two-year slide in its fortunes.
Li Ning, founded by the former Olympic gymnast of the same name, on Wednesday night reported an 85 per cent drop in first-half net profit to Rmb44.3m ($7m). The company said it expected its second-half gross profit margin to be similar to the first half’s 44.2 per cent, down from 47.3 per cent a year earlier.