Against a backdrop of widely reported retail challenges in the Group's core UK market, the company reported an "encouraging ... positive like for like trends in the Group's global Sports Fashion, particularly overseas".

Given the increasing significance of the international businesses in the overall group's result, and the fact that there is a differentiated timing of the post-Christmas sale period in a number of JD key overseas markets, the ultimate outturn will reflect trading in these markets through the remainder of the month of January.

According to the update given to the markets, the company remains confident that the full year group headline profit before tax will be in the upper quartile of current market expectations which should range from 403 million British pounds to 433 million British pounds.

JD preliminary results for the year ended on the 1^st of February 2020 will be published on the 15^th of April 2020.