US retail titan Wal-Mart has reported record sales and earnings for the first quarter but said its results were lower than expected due to higher petrol prices and bad weather.

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Net income for the quarter ended 30 April 2005 was $2.5bn, an increase of 13.6% from $2.2bn in the first quarter of the previous year. Earnings per share were $0.58, compared with $0.50 for the prior year first quarter. Net sales for the first quarter were $70.9bn, an increase of 9.5% over the first quarter of fiscal 2005.


“We achieved record results in the quarter. Yet with higher gasoline prices and a cooler and wetter spring than normal, we missed our plan. We are making the necessary adjustments and I anticipate better results in the second half of the year,” said Lee Scott, Wal-Mart’s president and CEO.


Total US comparable sales for the quarter increased 2.9%, including a 2.8% comparable increase for Wal-Mart Stores and a 3.5% increase for Sam’s Club.


The company’s international segment had operating income of $667m for the most recent quarter, an increase of 18.5% compared with $563m in the first quarter of fiscal 2005.

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