There are new fears for jobs at music giant EMI's Swindon CD pressings factory, following "totally awful" trading in September.

Chairman Eric Nicoli said more job losses across the London-based group which employs 200 people in the town and about 10,000 people globally were possible, although he refused to discuss details.

EMI first warned in September it had been hit by a worldwide slump in CD sales and has since cut 500 jobs across its global operations.

Mr Nicoli was reporting a dramatic drop in half year profits and said that the trading figures in September, which he described as "totally awful", came after the US terror attacks hurt an already fragile market.

Falling CD sales hit the company hardest, despite having such artists as the Beatles and Robbie Williams on its books.

But he said sales had begun to pick up: "October was still soft but better than September.

"It is still early days, but November is looking like it's on track."

However, he conceded: "In uncertain market conditions, it remains difficult to predict the outcome for the full year."

Half-year turnover was £1.07 billion, down on last year's £1.14 billion, and, stripping out one-off charges, operating profits slumped from £110.9 million to £43.1 million, while bottom-line losses widened from £9.7 million to £65.6 million.