German retailer Metro ekes out slight profit
Tuesday, 4 August 2009
FRANKFURT, Aug 3 (AFP): German retailer Metro posted today a 3.8 per cent drop in second quarter sales owing to negative foreign exchange effects in eastern Europe, but managed to eke out a slight net profit.
Metro's sales fell to 15.3 billion euros (21.8 billion dollars), a group statement said.
The world's third biggest retailer behind Walmart and Carrefour nonetheless made a net profit of 48 million euros, compared with a loss of 453 million in the second quarter of 2008.
Analysts polled by Dow Jones Newswires had expected Metro to turn in a higher net profit of 78 million euros however.
In the first half of 2009, group sales amounted to 30.5 billion euros, a decrease of 3.2 per cent from the same period a year earlier, although when it was corrected for foreign exchange they gained 0.5 per cent.
Eastern European sales plunged by 11.6 per cent on an uncorrected basis, but edged higher by 0.1 per cent within the group's domestic German market.
Metro did not give an outlook for the rest of the year, although chief executive Eckhard Cordes said that "in view of the massive economic crisis Metro stood its ground well."
The final result would depend on large part on development in slumping jobs markets, he added.
Metro's sales fell to 15.3 billion euros (21.8 billion dollars), a group statement said.
The world's third biggest retailer behind Walmart and Carrefour nonetheless made a net profit of 48 million euros, compared with a loss of 453 million in the second quarter of 2008.
Analysts polled by Dow Jones Newswires had expected Metro to turn in a higher net profit of 78 million euros however.
In the first half of 2009, group sales amounted to 30.5 billion euros, a decrease of 3.2 per cent from the same period a year earlier, although when it was corrected for foreign exchange they gained 0.5 per cent.
Eastern European sales plunged by 11.6 per cent on an uncorrected basis, but edged higher by 0.1 per cent within the group's domestic German market.
Metro did not give an outlook for the rest of the year, although chief executive Eckhard Cordes said that "in view of the massive economic crisis Metro stood its ground well."
The final result would depend on large part on development in slumping jobs markets, he added.