British retailer Marks & Spencer posted its sixth consecutive quarter of falling sales.
The company's shares rose, however, as the company firmed up its profit forecast.
Investors took a crumb of comfort from an improvement in clothing sales, but chief executive Stuart Rose said the figures were still poor despite smaller sales declines.
Simon Proctor, analyst at broker Charles Stanley
Same-store sales, stripping out the effect of new selling space and closed stores, fell 4.9 per cent in the 13 weeks to April 2nd, including the impact of Easter and the mid-season sale.
Like-for-like clothing and home sales were down 6.7 per cent in the fourth quarter, an improvement from the 8.5 per cent decline in the previous quarter.
But Mr Rose said the company had lost market share in clothing during the quarter. M&S said it expected profit before tax and exceptional items for 2004/05 to be in the range of £610 million to £625 million, lifting the base of its forecast range from the £600 million to £625 million range it predicted in January.
"There are signs of improvement, but trading is still woeful," said Mr Simon Proctor, analyst at broker Charles Stanley. The fall in fourth-quarter sales was in line with analysts' expectations of a drop in like-for-like sales of about 4 to 5 per cent.
Shares in M&S have outperformed the FTSE general retailers' index by around 13 per cent over the past 12 months, largely on the strength of a failed bid from entrepreneur Philip Green.
M&S was the target of an unsuccessful 400 pence-per-share approach from Mr Green last year, which Mr Rose fought off with the aid of the company's legion of private shareholders.