Ocado has unveiled widening losses as it laid bare the impact of a fire at one of its warehouses, but the group said it was still confident in its growth prospects.

The online grocer reported a loss before tax of £142.8 million for the 26 weeks to June 2, marking a significant increase on the £13.6 million loss reported last year.

Adjusted retail revenues were up 9.7% to £803.2 million.
Meanwhile, adjusted underlying earnings almost halved to £18.7 million.

The company said the dip in profitability was down to the impact of the fire at its Andover facility, the cost of share incentive schemes for management, and a delay in recognising fees from its partnerships with overseas retailers due to accounting standards.

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For the full year, the fire is now expected to have a £15 million impact on earnings.

Share schemes, which are dependent on the company's share price, will also have a £10 million impact due to the rise in the stock's value over the past year.

Despite the setbacks, the company still expects retail revenue growth of between 10% and 15% in the second half of the year.

It comes as Ocado shifts its focus following the announcement of a joint venture with Marks & Spencer.

The deal will replace an existing partnership between Ocado and Waitrose next year.

Mike Ashley's Sports Direct has said its offer for video games retailer Game Digital is now unconditional after securing backing from shareholders owning nearly 16% of shares.

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Sports Direct said, that together with its 38.5% stake, it now owns or has received backing from shareholders representing 54.3% of Game Digital.

It said its offer is now "declared unconditional in all respects", but will remain open for acceptances from investors until the 1pm deadline on July 11.

Housebuilder Bovis Homes has brushed aside Brexit uncertainty to cheer a "significant" step up in profits as it reported rising sales and prices.

The group said housing completions rose 4% to 1,647 in the six months to June 30, with average private selling prices rising to around £342,000, up from £334,700 a year earlier.

Total average selling prices rose by 3% to around £270,000.
Its average weekly sales rate per site jumped 15% to 0.6, the group added.

Chief executive Greg Fitzgerald hailed an "excellent" first half and said interim profits are set to improve markedly.