German retailer Metro Group has reported a slight lift in overall net sales in 2012, enabling the firm to reconfirm its operating profit guidance for the year.
For the 12 months to the end of December, Metro reported sales up by 1.2% versus 2011, to EUR66.7bn (US$88.7bn). The retailer reiterated that it expects to report earnings before interest, tax and one-off charges of EUR2m for the year.
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Its figures, released today (16 January), also offer some underlying perspective on the performance, showing that sales rose at 0.8% in local currencies, and by 2.3% if the disposed-of Makro UK and Saturn France are excluded.
Metro’s chairman, Olaf Koch, said the group has made “significant progress” in 2012, despite a “challenging year” marked by rising unemployment across Europe and a particularly acute economic crisis in the south of the region. The problems in Europe were partly offset by a strong growth trend in Asia.
In the fourth quarter, Metro’s global net sales crept up by 0.5% to EUR19.4bn, although slipped by 0.5% in local currencies.
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By GlobalData
