RS Group, a London-listed industrial and electronics products distributor, announced a 2% decline in total revenue for the first quarter of fiscal 2024. The company attributed this decrease to several factors, including lower purchasing manager index data, a challenging electronics market, and a weakening industrial market.
The performance of RS Group in the EMEA and Americas regions was slightly below expectations, while the Asia Pacific region experienced volatility.
During the period, like-for-like revenue dropped by 7%. This decline was partially due to the strategic repositioning of the OKdo business, which resulted in a reduction of revenue by over 1%. Additionally, RS Group was affected by the absence of the previous year’s tailwinds caused by supply constraints, particularly in the electronics product category, as well as the unwinding of customer inventory builds.
Within the group’s revenue breakdown, the industrial product ranges, which account for approximately 78% of the total, remained flat. On the other hand, the electronics products range saw a significant decline of 24%.
Chief Executive Simon Pryce commented on the challenging trading environment, stating, “We are reacting well by maintaining a strong focus, effectively managing our cost base, and continuing to invest strategically for the future.”
RS Group also announced the appointment of Kate Ringrose as its new chief financial officer, effective October 2. Ringrose previously served as CFO at Centrica.
At 0702 GMT, RS Group’s shares were down 1.7% at 747.40 pence.