Currys shares surge after hot summer and AI demand lift sales; £50m buyback announced
Electricals retailer reports 3% UK and Ireland sales rise in 17 weeks to Aug. 30 as air conditioning, AI computing and new product ranges drive growth
Currys Plc shares jumped after the electricals retailer reported stronger-than-expected summer trading, driven by surging demand for air conditioning and AI-capable computing, and announced an immediate £50 million share buyback.
The group said sales in the UK and Ireland in the 17 weeks to Aug. 30 were up 3% compared with the same period a year earlier. Shares rose 15.7%, climbing 17.1p to 126.1p on the news, as the company said the performance marked a positive start to its financial year.
Chief Executive Alex Baldock said the group had seen “encouraging performance across the group.” Currys highlighted several product categories that outperformed, citing particularly strong demand for air conditioning units and electrical fans as Britain experienced its warmest summer since temperature records began in 1884. The retailer also pointed to robust returns on gaming, AI-enabled computing devices and coffee machines, and said new ranges such as beauty technology (including LED face masks) and pet technology (monitors and automatic feeders) sold well.
The upbeat trading contrasts with caution from some other High Street names. Recent profit and outlook warnings from companies such as Greggs and JD Sports have underscored worries about consumer spending in the months ahead, but Currys said its summer sales helped to defy that broader retail gloom.
Alongside the buyback, Baldock reiterated a long-standing industry concern about business rates, calling for shops to be excluded from higher business rates that he said weigh on physical retail. The company did not give a full-year profit guidance in the trading update but said the early trading period provided a “good start to the year.”
Market reaction to Currys’s update reflected relief that the retailer had captured demand for summer-specific items and growing consumer interest in devices supporting artificial intelligence. Investors also welcomed the £50 million repurchase programme, which the company said had been launched immediately as a return of capital to shareholders.
Currys said the results were recorded across its store and online operations in the UK and Ireland; the group operates hundreds of physical outlets across the markets it serves. The trading statement covered the 17-week period that ended on Aug. 30 and was published on Sept. 4, 2025.
The retailer’s performance underlines how short-term weather patterns and rapidly evolving consumer interest in AI-capable technology can materially affect sales of electrical goods. Currys’s stronger summer trading and the share buyback will be closely watched by investors and peers as indicators of resilient demand in parts of the domestic retail market despite broader economic concerns.