Shares jumped 20 percent by midday as the company revealed its upcoming balancing act of consumer expectations, after reporting first-quarter sales down by 2 percent.
The new boss of H&M faces a thorny dilemma: increase prices and lose more ground to budget online fast-fashion rival Shein, or cut prices and risk profit margins falling short of target. Daniel Ervér, 42, took the reins at H&M on Wednesday after Helena Helmersson quit in a surprise announcement that sent the company's shares down more than 10%. At the same time, H&M said sales continued to fall over the key holiday trading months of December and January, raising questions about how much revenue the retailer is sacrificing in pursuit of a higher profit margin.