Shares of Doncaster-based DFS Furniture plc rose about 8% on Wednesday after it published a trading update for the 26-week financial reporting period to December 26, 2021, together with an update on recent business levels.

DFS said its order bank is strong going into the second half of the financial year and continues to be £200 million higher than pre-pandemic levels on a revenue basis.

DFS reported gross sales were up 10% on the FY19 comparator period and that “based upon reasonable delivery assumptions in H2, our scenarios for the full year profit before tax and amortisation remain unchanged.”

The Doncaster firm added: “Given the robust financial position and positive outlook for the group, we will share our future investment and special capital return plans at our upcoming interims and investor event on 15 March 2022.”

DFS CEO Tim Stacey said: “While the market remains hard to predict, we believe our scale, brand strength and integrated retail strategy will allow us to drive market share gains ahead of the competition.

“Looking ahead we will continue to invest in our digital platforms and our showrooms, our delivery network, our UK manufacturing capacity, and with expansion into other home categories, we are well positioned to succeed.”