The retailer has flagged an expected drop in earnings of between 60% and 70% for the year to end June.

Woolworths has flagged an expected drop in earnings of between -60% and -70% due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and a change in accounting standards.  
The group provided a guidance note to shareholders on Friday morning on its expected results for the 52 weeks to end June.
“Covid-19 had a significant impact on the performance of the group in the second half of the financial year, and is expected to continue to do so for at least the remainder of the calendar year, given the fluid and challenging environment,” it said. Earnings were also affected by the adoption of the IFRS 16 accounting standards. 
The retailer said it expects headline earnings per share to fall between -60.0% to -70.0%, from 342.9 cents to between 102.9 to 137.2 cents. 
The group’s year-end financial results will be released in mid-September.