Covid-19 impact on 2019 annual report results in new publishing date of 30 June 2020.
The scale and scope of the global effort to bring Covid-19 under control has resulted in restrictions on trade with the UK, South Africa, the USA and Australia adopting additional social distancing and lockdown measures.
In a statement, Steinhoff International Holdings said that all the countries they operate in have now implemented broad-based steps to contain the spread of the virus. These measures have resulted in the partial or full closure of many of Steinhoff’s general merchandise stores, or restrictions on trading hours, and the closure of the company’s offices.
The retail company said that it expects Covid-19 to have a material negative impact on its overall turnover and the underlying business performance during this period.
In light of this impact, the group said that financial regulators in the countries they operate in have indicated that they will take into consideration that the operational restrictions relating to Covid-19 will have an impact on the timetable for the publication of its 2019 annual report and audited consolidated financial statements.
Steinhoff’s management board and Mazars, its external auditor, have jointly agreed that the annual report will be published on 30 June.
Steinhoff CFO Theodore de Klerk says that finalising the accounting and audit work for the 2019 annual report in the current circumstances has presented an unexpected additional challenge. “Unfortunately, we require further time to complete this task.”
Having conducted a thorough review of all matters outstanding with Mazars, Theodore says they have estimated a new timetable that they believe is achievable. “We have a clear view of the tasks ahead and I would like to assure all stakeholders that we continue to apply maximum effort to finish the job.”
