Better times for Pittard Garner

PITTARD GARNER, the leather company, said yesterday it had taken a further modest step towards recovery but admitted it failed to fulfil expectations in the first six months of 1992, writes John Shepherd.

The group, in the red in 1990, announced a further rebound in half-year profits before tax from pounds 1.04m to pounds 1.3m. Interim dividend payments are also being resumed with a 0.5p distribution.

David Macdonald, chairman, said: 'Our plan was based on the key assumption that the UK and US would start to pull out of recession in the second quarter.'

Because that had not happened, he added: 'These results are falling some way short of what we had hoped to achieve. The present turmoil surrounding sterling makes it a virtual impossibility to predict what lies ahead. The watchword for us will continue to be the exercise of extreme caution.'