Carrefour's foreign businesses progress
other countries, three of which have reported growth this month. In
Spain, sales grew 9 per cent, while in Greece the company posted a
16 per cent increase. Carrefour's Polish business also grew with
the acquisiton of two new stores.
Centros Comerciales Carrefour (CCC), the Spanish arm of leading French hypermarket and supermarket operator, has reported operating profits of €301.8 million for 2002, a 12 per cent increase on the previous year and 2 per cent higher than expectations. Meanwhile, Carrefour's operations in Greece and Poland have also progressed.
Spanish turnover was up 9 per cent to €8.2 billion, with a 3.6 per cent increase in like-for-like sales at hypermarkets and a 0.3 per cent rise in sales from supermarkets. The consolidation of the Supeco Maxor group as of 1 January 2002 contributed a 7 per cent increase to sales.
Net profits for the year reached €318 million, some €52 million less than in the previous year. This 14 per cent drop was due mainly to exceptional gains in 2001 relating to a number of operations including the sale of 12 hypermarkets, eight supermarkets, a foodservice business and various shopping centre businesses. These operations were sold in order to raise cash for potential acquisitions in the future, the company said.
CCC said it had invested heavily last year in marketing and communication, and that it had also launched a new line of low-cost everyday products under the brand name '1'.
The Grupo Carrefour España increased its investments during 2002 to €325 million, including the opening of five hypermarkets and 14 supermarkets.
Meanwhile, Carrefour has expanded its Polish operations with the acquisition of two supermarkets in the southern town of Rzeszow from Polish company Frac. The price paid by Carrefour Polska was not disclosed, but the company is expected to convert the stores into its Champion fascia.
Elsewhere, Carrefour-Marinopoulos, the Greek subsidiary of Carrefour, has returned to the black in 2002 after losses in the previous year. For 2002 as a whole, the southern European unit of the retailer saw its pre-tax profits reach €30.8 million after losses of €15.4 million in 2001, while sales grew 16 per cent to €1.31 billion.
The company, a joint venture between the Greek retailer Marinopoulos and its much larger French counterpart, operates 13 hypermarkets and 142 supermarkets in Greece, and has plans to open three new hypermarkets and 15 new supermarkets each year.
