Table of Contents
Currys boss has warned that price rises, hiring more workers in India and automation are “inevitable” after the Chancellor’s “jobs tax” in the Budget.
Alex Baldock said the electrical goods retailer will not hire as many staff in the UK after Rachel Reeves dealt with a £25bn rise in National Insurance (NI).
The raid will cost Currys an extra £30m a year at a time when it is also facing an inflation-busting minimum wage rise and higher business rates.
These higher costs mean Currys is looking to hire more workers in India, where it already employs 3.6 percent of its workforce.
Baldock said: ‘We already have the best part of 1,000 colleagues in India – all the usual central and IT functions you would expect – and they do an excellent job.
“You can expect that as costs for the UK population inflate we will see more of that, that is simply inevitable.”
Job cuts: Currys boss Alex Baldock said the electrical goods retailer will not hire as many staff in the UK after Rachel Reeves came to the business with a £25bn national insurance boost.
He said that the increase in the IN “is a tax on jobs that does not benefit colleagues at all.”
The employer’s NI levy was increased from 13.8 per cent to 15 per cent, and the threshold for paying it was reduced from £9,100 to £5,000. Currys will also increase the use of automation on the shop floor.
Baldock warned that price increases are “inevitable”, although he insisted Currys “will do everything possible to keep them to a minimum”.
Calling the budget “useless,” Baldock said: “We want to invest more, hire more and help the economy grow faster.”
“What we are asking is that the environment allows us to do so.” And he added: “The outlook is less rosy than in the summer, but a little better than a year ago.”
“In the summer, inflation was falling, interest rates were expected to go down, consumer confidence and spending were rising, and that has plateaued.”
Despite this, the company impressed shareholders by reporting excellent Christmas trading.
Strong demand for laptops, mobile phones and games helped UK sales rise 2 per cent in the 10 weeks to January 4.
And it now expects profits of between £145m and £155m for the year to April 2025, an increase of up to 31 per cent on the previous year. The shares rose 10.3 per cent, or 8.8p, to 90.8p.
Investors were also encouraged by news that the group will declare a dividend of around 1.3 per share when it publishes its annual results in July. This is your first payment since 2022.
Richard Hunter, head of markets at Interactive Investor, said: “Currys has joined the crowd of retailers who enjoyed a strong festive trading period, and confirmation of a return to dividend payments is an added bonus.”
‘Overall, Currys has an optimistic outlook. “The market consensus on buying shares will remain intact, as investors believe that this growth story has to continue,” he added.
DIY INVESTMENT PLATFORMS

AJ Bell

AJ Bell
Easy investing and ready-to-use portfolios

Hargreaves Lansdown

Hargreaves Lansdown
Free Fund Trading and Investment Ideas

interactive inverter

interactive inverter
Fixed fee investing from £4.99 per month

sax

sax
Get £200 back in trading fees

Trade 212

Trade 212
Free trading and no account commission
Affiliate links: If you purchase a This is Money product you may earn a commission. These offers are chosen by our editorial team as we think they are worth highlighting. This does not affect our editorial independence.