Trading Statement

GUS PLC
12 October 2005


12 October 2005

                                    GUS plc
                           First Half Trading Update

GUS plc, the retail and business services group, today issues its regular update
on trading.

John Peace, Group Chief Executive of GUS, said:

'An outstanding performance from Experian was clearly the highlight of our first
half. With sales up 29%, the strength of Experian's broad product and geographic
reach is evident. ARG continues to be affected by the challenging UK retail
environment but made good operational progress in the half. We believe that all
our businesses are executing effectively on plans designed to deliver long-term
value creation for shareholders.'


Argos Retail Group (ARG)

% change in sales year-on-year
Six months to 30 September 2005                                              %
Argos - total                                                                4
      - like-for-like                                                       (3)

Seven months to 30 September 20051                                          
Homebase - total                                                            (1)
         - like-for-like                                                    (4)
---------------------------                               --------------------

1 Homebase's year-end is the end of February to avoid distortions relating to
the timing of Easter.

The non-food, non-clothing market in the UK remained weak during the first half,
with sales falling on a like-for-like basis. ARG is planning on the assumption
that like-for-like sales will remain in decline for the market as a whole for
the next 12 months.

However, in the first half, against this background, both Argos and Homebase
outperformed their markets and maintained or improved gross margin.
Retailers are currently facing higher cost inflation which is adversely
affecting Argos but more so Homebase, given its cost structure. Despite the
current weak economic environment, both businesses continue to invest in areas
such as new space, supply chain and new ranges to strengthen their long-term
competitive position.

Argos
Argos increased its sales by 4% in total in the first half. Of this, new stores
contributed nearly 7%, while like-for-like sales declined by 3%. Compared to the
same period last year, there were good performances from consumer electronics
(particularly MP3 players and LCD televisions), white goods, leisure and toys.
Jewellery and housewares remained difficult. Argos continued to deliver supply
chain gains such that gross margin was in line with last year despite an adverse
product and promotional mix.

The biggest ever Autumn/Winter catalogue was successfully launched on 30 July.
This catalogue now offers 17,700 lines (up from 13,200 a year ago) to customers
in all stores. Argos also opened 44 stores in the half, including 30 of the 33
acquired Index stores, which were refitted and reopened near to the end of the
period. The remaining three Index stores will open by the end of October. At 30
September 2005, Argos traded from 636 stores.

Argos Direct, the delivery to home operation, grew its sales by 6% in the first
half and accounted for 25% of Argos' revenue. Sales via the Internet increased
by 30%, representing 7% of total revenue. A further 7% of total sales was made
via Argos' 'Check and Reserve' multi-channel ordering facilities, up 26% year on
year.

As previously announced, profit at Argos in the first half will bear the
transitional costs for the Index stores, the costs associated with the change in
staffing arrangements in-store and higher catalogue and payroll-related costs as
reported under IFRS. Combined, these are expected to total around £20m.

Homebase
In a market that deteriorated further towards the end of the first half, sales
at Homebase declined by 1% in total for the seven months to 30 September 2005.
Of this, new stores contributed 3% growth while like-for-like sales declined by
4%. There were strong performances from horticulture (new ranges and
merchandising) and from big ticket items, especially in kitchens and Furniture
Extra, which benefited from new ranges and additional mezzanine space. Tools,
building and seasonal gardening lines were weaker.

Driven by supply chain gains, gross margin at Homebase in the first half was
slightly ahead of last year although higher costs are impacting its operating
margin. Looking forward, increased promotional activity in the market may also
affect profit.

At 30 September 2005, Homebase traded from 293 stores, an increase of six in the
half. 19 mezzanine floors were added to existing stores in the period, with
another four planned for the second half. 134 stores currently have mezzanine
floors.

Experian

% change in sales year-on-year for the six months to 30 September 2005

Continuing activities only          At actual exchange           At constant 
                                          rates %              exchange rates %

Experian North America                       36                       37
Experian International                       20                       19                
Global Experian                              29                       29

Experian has achieved record underlying sales growth in the first half. This was
driven by the strength of Experian's offer in many products and in many
countries, aided by effective sales execution and continued innovation in
value-added solutions. Total sales in the first half increased by 29% at
constant exchange rates with strong organic growth (12%) complemented by the
contribution from acquisitions (17%) which are trading well.

Experian North America
In dollars, Experian North America's sales from continuing activities increased
by 37% in the first half. Corporate acquisitions contributed 19% to sales growth
in the first half, with the largest being LowerMyBills.com which was purchased
in May 2005. Excluding these acquisitions, sales grew by an exceptional 18%. The
business faces much stronger comparatives in the second half (H1 2004/5: +7%; H2
2004/5: +14%).

Credit sales benefited from strong market demand in credit profiles and
prescreen activity, from the FACTA cost recovery charge as well as continued
contract wins in value-added products such as event triggers, account management
and scoring products. Strong organic sales growth from email marketing, business
marketing and the automotive business underpinned the performance of Marketing.
Excluding acquisitions, sales at Experian Interactive grew by nearly 40% in the
first half, slowing in the latter part of the period. Increased use of the
Internet by consumers and advertisers coupled with product innovation continues
to drive premium growth in this business.

Experian International
Experian International, which accounts for over 40% of Experian's worldwide
revenue, grew sales from continuing activities in the first half by 19% at
constant exchange rates. Of this, 14% came from acquisitions, mainly QAS, a
leading supplier of address management software, which was acquired in October
2004.

Excluding acquisitions, Experian International showed solid growth in Credit,
Marketing and Outsourcing. Despite a slowdown in the rate of growth in gross
lending in the UK, Experian continued to deliver a robust performance in this
market driven by value-added products and by initiatives focused on markets
including automotive, telecommunications and the public sector. Underlying
double-digit growth continued in Spain, Italy and Eastern Europe. Experian
continues to invest in new regions, recently signing its first contract in Japan
to sell decision solutions to JCB, the largest card issuer in Japan.


Burberry
GUS has a 65% stake in Burberry Group plc. The following summarises the latter's
Trading Update released today.

% change in sales year-on-year for the six months ended 30 September 2005

                                                       %
At actual exchange rates                               2
At constant exchange rates1                            3

1 Also excludes the financial effect of the acquisition of Burberry's 
Taiwan-related business.

Underlying sales at Burberry in the first half increased by 3% at constant
exchange rates excluding the effect of the acquisition of Burberry's
Taiwan-related business.

Underlying retail sales increased by 9% driven by contributions from new and
refurbished stores. Underlying Wholesale revenue declined by 1% in the half. On
the basis of Spring/Summer 2006 merchandise orders received to date, Burberry
anticipates a moderate underlying decline in Wholesale revenue for the second
half. Underlying licensing revenue increased by 3%. Burberry recently announced
a new ten-year eyewear licence with Luxottica Group.

The management team at Burberry will be further strengthened by the appointment
of Angela Ahrendts. She will join Burberry in January 2006 and become Chief
Executive on 1 July 2006. Rose Marie Bravo will assume the role of Vice-Chairman
at that time.

Preparations for the planned demerger of GUS' remaining 65% stake in Burberry in
December 2005 are on track.

Future announcements
GUS will announce its Interim Results for the six months to 30 September 2005 on
17 November 2005. The Third Quarter Trading Update will be on 12 January 2006.

Enquiries

GUS
David Tyler     Finance Director                         020 7495 0070
Fay Dodds       Director of Investor Relations

Finsbury
Rupert Younger                                           020 7251 3801
Rollo Head

GUS announcements are available on its website, www.gusplc.com. There will be a
conference call to discuss this update at 3pm today, with a recording available
later on the GUS website.

All financial statements presented by GUS are now prepared under International
Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). The unaudited financial results for the
year to 31 March 2005 and the six months to 30 September 2004 as prepared under
IFRS were released on 14 June 2005 and are available on the GUS website.

Certain statements made in this announcement are forward looking statements.
Such statements are based on current expectations and are subject to a number of
risks and uncertainties that could cause actual events or results to differ
materially from any expected future events or results referred to in these
forward looking statements.

Any shares to be distributed in the proposed demerger of Burberry Group plc have
not been and will not be registered under the US Securities Act of 1933 (the
'Securities Act') and may not be offered or sold within the United States absent
registration under the Securities Act or an exemption from registration. No
public offering of such shares will be made in the United States.




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