Premier Inn owner Whitbread has posted lower profits in the first half of the year as it was weighed down by "difficult" UK trading conditions.

The company saw like-for-like UK accommodation sales decline by 3.6% for the six months to September due to weaker sales outside of London.

Whitbread said that market conditions continued to be "challenging" as consumer confidence remained weak amid "heightened political and economic uncertainty".

The FTSE 100 company said the slump in confidence has continued into the third quarter and that "near-term market conditions in the UK remain uncertain".

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Adjusted revenue for the half year dipped 0.1% to £1.08 billion, while adjusted pre-tax profit slipped 4.1% to £236 million as margins were squeezed.

Whitbread said profits were dented by weaker domestic hotel demand, particularly in regional areas, where it has 80% of Premier Inn sites.

It also noted that it saw a "greater decline" in the number of short-notice bookings, which are typically priced higher.

Despite this, the company said it "retained a strong balance sheet" as it benefited from the £3.9 billion sale of the Costa Coffee chain to Coca-Cola last year.

Package holiday business On The Beach said it is set to cash in on the collapse of rival Thomas Cook, nudging shares higher.

The online travel firm said the collapse of the 178-year-old UK tour operator created an "unprecedented opportunity" to take additional market share.

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As a result, On The Beach has started to increase its marketing spend to attract new customers both online and offline.

The news came as the company said its trading for the full year to September 30 was in line with management forecasts.

In August, the travel firm issued a profit warning after it was hit by the plummeting value of the pound amid the risk of a no-deal Brexit.

The company said the diving value of sterling against the euro from May forced it to push up its holiday prices compared to competitors.

It added it now saw greater opportunity for growth following the collapse of its rival.

The company added that it has to re-book and refund a number of customers following the collapse of Thomas Cook.

Household goods giant Reckitt Benckiser has slashed its annual sales outlook for the second time this year after a "disappointing" third quarter.

Shares in the group, which makes Vanish and Lysol, dropped 5% as it said sales fell 0.3% across its health division in the three months to September 30, leaving revenues overall growing by a muted 1.6% to £3.3 billion.

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Reckitt cut its expectations for full-year like-for-like sales growth to between zero and 2% due to the poor third quarter and "seasonal uncertainty" in the final three months.

Profit margins are also expected to see a "modest" fall in 2019, it cautioned.

It comes after Reckitt lowered its revenue guidance in July amid a slowdown in demand for baby formula in China.