Hennes & Mauritz (H&M) said that a “well-received” spring collection led to sales rising almost 20% in May. For the second quarter, the Swedish fashion giant said that pre-tax profit rose to 7.6 billion Swedish kronor (£670m; $1.1 billion).

In the period, the group opened its first shop in Australia to a “fantastic reception”.

"We have had a good second quarter, with a strong increase in both sales and profits and increased market share," said H&M chief executive Karl-Johan Persson.

"All our brands - H&M, COS, & Other Stories, Monki, Weekday, Cheap Monday and H&M Home - enjoyed good sales development during the second quarter.

"We are very pleased that H&M Sport, which we are broadening further, continued to gain market share within the sports segment," he added.