2020 – a year marked by the Covid-19 pandemic?The H&M group started the year strongly and with a positive momentum until the first wave of Covid-19 had an impact. Extensive social restrictions involving temporary store closures and large drops in customer footfall to physical stores led to a substantial decrease in sales, particularly in the second quarter.

A strong recovery in the third quarter continued for much of the fourth quarter. Between 1 September and 21 October sales decreased by 3 percent in local currencies compared with the same period last year. Between 22 October and 30 November sales decreased by 22 percent compared with the corresponding period last year, as the recovery transitioned into a new slowdown as a result of the pandemic’s second wave.