Kesa, Europe’s third-biggest electricals retailer, has fallen into the red and has slashed its dividend in anticipation of tough conditions continuing for the rest of the year..

Revealing a 6.2 per cent fall in like-for-like sales in the year to April 30, the owner of the UK’s Comet chain said that it was budgeting for 5-6 per cent fall in overall like-for-like sales this year, and so far the trend was in line with its expectations.