Sears Holdings, the fourth-largest US retailer, on Thursday reported another set of weak quarterly results at its Sears and Kmart stores, under­lining continued doubts about its direction under chairman Eddie Lampert, the billionaire investor.

The group blamed the tough economic environment and increased competition as its quarterly earnings declined 62 per cent to $65m – including a $37m one-off gain linked to a legal judgment – while net sales fell 4 per cent to $11.8bn.