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Home improvement giant Kingfisher has said its profits are set to reach the “upper end” of targets after it was buoyed by strong º£½ÇÊÓƵ trading for B&Q and Somerset-based Screwfix.

The retail group said it saw another increase in demand for big ticket items, as it benefited from “favourable weather” and the closure of rival Homebase stores.

It reported that total sales grew by 0.8% to £6.81bn for the six months to July 31, compared with a year earlier, as like-for-like sales rose 1.9%.

Meanwhile, pre-tax profits grew by 4.1% to £338m for the half-year.

Thierry Garnier, chief executive officer of Kingfisher, said: “We delivered a strong first half with high quality underlying like-for-like sales growth of 1.9%, driven by increased volumes and transactions.

“We were encouraged by underlying quarter-on-quarter growth in our core categories, and a third consecutive quarter of growth in big ticket sales.

“Our expectations for our markets for the year remain consistent with what we outlined in March, whilst mindful of mixed consumer sentiment and political uncertainty.

“Combined with our first half performance, this gives us the confidence to upgrade our full year profit and free cash flow guidance and to accelerate our share buyback programme."