Boohoo reveals deal to buy Oasis and Warehouse | B&Q sales surge | Airline to resume Scottish flights

Oasis Warehouse was placed in administration in April, with the loss of more than 1,800 jobs after a buyer could not be found for the high street stores.

The Boohoo deal was announced as it cheered a "very strong" hike in sales throughout the coronavirus lockdown, with UK sales surging 30% in the three months to May 31.

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Boohoo, which also bought Karen Millen and Coast's online businesses from administrators last summer, said it would integrate the Oasis and Warehouse online operations into its platform in the coming months.

"Oasis and Warehouse are two well-established brands in the UK targeting fashion-forward shoppers and are a complementary addition to our portfolio of brands," Boohoo said.

It comes as Boohoo is planning to capitalise on the shake-up in the retail sector, having raised £197.7 million in an investor cash call last month to "take advantage of numerous M&A (mergers and acquisitions) opportunities that are likely to emerge in the global fashion industry over the coming months".

Shares in Boohoo jumped 10% higher after its trading update and news of the deal.

B&Q and Screwfix owner Kingfisher has revealed sales surged during lockdown as the company was allowed to remain open as an "essential" retailer.

It said like-for-like sales jumped 21.8% in the three months to June 13, compared with the same time a year ago, although there was a 24.8% drop in the first three months of the year as stores were either forced to close or shut to prepare staff for social distancing.

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Chief executive Thierry Garnier said it was too early to say what the full impact from the coronavirus crisis would be, but explained he would be focusing on improving services and online operations.

He added: "When the various lockdowns began, we rapidly transformed our operations to meet a sharp increase in e-commerce, while adapting our retail space and processes to ensure a safe reopening of stores.

"In doing so, the social distancing and other health and safety protocols we established have contributed to setting the standard in non-food retailing."

A new Powered By Kingfisher strategic plan will also be rolled out to try to grow the business once the economy starts improving.

Priorities include growing its online business after a four-fold increase in sales during lockdown, improving services, pushing own-brand products - which have higher profit margins - and handing over more power to regional executives.

On reopening, the company said its supply chains in China have been restored after factory closures earlier in the year.

But the company warned: "The key risks to availability are now driven by exceptional and volatile demand within the paint, outdoor and building materials ranges, where vendors are challenged in keeping up with recent high demand levels."

It comes as pre-tax profits hit £103 million for the year ending January 31, compared with £300 million a year earlier, mainly due to a £441 million hit in exceptional costs. Sales were down 1.5% during the period to £11.5 billion.

Airline Norwegian has announced it will resume serving UK airports from July 1 due to increased demand.

The carrier will initially operate flights on four UK routes, connecting Gatwick and Edinburgh with Oslo and Copenhagen.

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Since April, Norwegian has only operated domestic flights within Norway due to the collapse in passenger numbers caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

The airline's chief executive, Jacob Schram, said: "Feedback from our customers has shown that they are keen to get back in the air and resume their travels with Norwegian beyond the current domestic services that we have been operating.

"Norwegian is returning to European skies with the reintroduction of more aircraft to serve our key destinations, which will ensure that we remain in line with competing carriers."

Mr Schram added that Norwegian will offer "great value" as "competition in the industry begins to recover over the summer period".

It has introduced a series of enhanced safety and hygiene measures, including requiring passengers to wear face masks, banning hand luggage from being put in overhead lockers, and not operating a catering service.

In May, the airline secured a £221 million loan backed by the Norwegian government as part of a rescue package to ensure its survival amid huge losses.

Gatwick chief executive Stewart Wingate, who has seen passenger numbers at his airport decimated during the pandemic, described the return of Norwegian flights as "very welcome news".

He said: "Consumer demand is picking up as more people want to start flying again.

"For our part, the airport is ready to go and we have implemented a range of measures to protect the wellbeing and safety of both passengers and staff in recent weeks.

"We are starting to see small green shoots of recovery."

EasyJet restarted flights for the first time in 11 weeks on Monday.

Among airlines which plan to increase services from current skeleton schedules, Ryanair intends to restore 40% of its flights from July 1, and British Airways is due to make a "meaningful return" to service next month.