Inditex’s nine-month earnings before interest and tax were up three per cent. The negative currency impact on sales in the third quarter was 3.2 per cent. The group has missed sales and profit forecasts, hit by adverse currency moves and an unusually warm September, leading investors to wipe more than $5billion off the fashion retailer’s market value at one stage. Inditex is highly sensitive to fluctuations in the euro as it sells from China to Russia to India across its thousands-strong global portfolio of stores. Inditex generates more than half of its sales in currencies other than the euro and then books those sales in euros when reporting results. However, its centralised sourcing and distribution model means a large chunk of its costs are in euros.

Spanish Inditex is the owner of Zara, Massimo Dutti and Bershka. Zara's growth is flagging because of heightened competition, which is forcing the company to lower the price of clothes and footwear and to put more apparel on sale. Growth in online sales is also chipping away at profitability, because it is more expensive to ship internet orders. The global apparel retail market continues to face significant structural challenges and Inditex is no longer best positioned.