onph30 Aug 2012 22:29
French supermarket giant Carrefour, the second largest retailer in the world by sales, reported a smaller than expected decline in first-half profit.
Second quarter sales in Asia (+14.0%) and Latin America (+2.7%) helped offset considerable weakness in Europe, especially in peripheral countries such as Italy and Spain where they dropped 5.5% and 5.3%, respectively.
Recurring operating income for the first six months of the year came in at €796m, above the €705m estimate.
After having cut guidance five times in just two years, the worlds's second largest retailer said this time that it feels "comfortable" with consensus estimates for 2012. Chief executive Georges Plasset assured investors that "the past is behind us, we need to look ahead".