New Mothercare chief executive Mark Newton-Jones has warned investors that the retailer's struggling UK business "needs modernising and requires investment".

Shares in the group dropped by as much as 9 per cent after Mr Newton-Jones made clear that there was no easy recovery for the retailer’s lossmaking UK business.

Mr Newton-Jones, who was made chief executive on a permanent basis last week after joining the group in March, said: “My early observation is that the business needs modernising and requires investment in its infrastructure, its stores and its head office systems.”

Trading at Mothercare has improved in recent weeks, with like-for-like sales in the UK business up 0.9 per cent year-on- year for the 15 weeks to July 12th. – Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2014