AUSTRALIA: Positive sales results encourage increase in Woolworth’s share value

It was announced yesterday (16 October) that Australian supermarket giant Woolworth's had experienced a better-than-expected 9.6% sales boost for the Q1 of 2000/01, and CEO Roger Corbett is confident that the company is on track to achieve high single-digit sales growth during the full year.Aided by the lowering of personal income tax, and even the impact of the Olympic Games, the store's sales performance reached A$5.29m during the same period, despite expectations that it would be adversely affected by the implementation of the Goods and Service Tax (GST) on 1 July.Corbett explained that: "The average price to customers ... was little changed. [And] in addition our market share grew." He commented, however, that a slowdown in sales is expected, in addition with low double-digit profit growth and continued cost savings over the rest of the year.Shares in the company were encouraged by the sales reports and gained $A0.13 to reach $A7.37 by the end of the day.