JOHANNESBURG, Dec 6 (Reuters) - Steinhoff International Holdings, now expects to publish its group audited financial statements for 2017 and 2018 by mid-April 2019, as a forensic investigation by auditors PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) has been delayed, the retailer said on Thursday.

The probe by PwC into the company's affairs is now expected to be completed by the end of February 2019, Steinhoff said. (Reporting by Nqobile Dludla; Editing by Amrutha Gayathri)