In France, Auchan has announced that net profits through the first half of the year dropped 17.8 per cent to €143m, hit by loss of value on debts and write-downs linked to recent investments.
Revenue climbed slightly to €18.7bn through the six-month period, an increase of 0.4 per cent on 2008, with French revenues standing at €8.9bn or 47 per cent of the total.
International sales enjoyed growth through the first half despite a negative currency effect, the group said, with revenues at hypermarkets up 1.4 per cent to €14.9bn.
EBITDA jumped 13 per cent to hit €929m, but this was not enough to appease group chairman Christophe Dubrulle.
'Although we managed to keep revenue and EBITDA stable, and gain market share in our hypermarket business in countries such as Poland, Spain and Italy, we cannot content ourselves for long with flat performance and a fall in income,' he said in a statement. 'We shall approach the second half with even greater attention to safeguarding our overall financial balances.'
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