Carrefour has announced very disappointing results about the first half of 2011 – even after issuing a profit warning earlier. Impatient shareholders continue to build up the pressure on the French supermarket chain.
Home bitter home?
Carrefour’s main problem is its home market, where it still earns 44% of its turnover. Mainly due to problems there, their semi-annual profits drop from 989 million euro last year to 760 million now (-23%). Turnover did rise however, to 44.6 billion (+2.7%), but the results of the second quarter were worse. “May and June were difficult months”, said financial director Pierre Bouchut. “We will have to bear the consequences of their bad figures all year long”.
The supermarket giant admits they will have to focus on sharp prices in order to regain a part of their home market. “Our permanent prices are to high”, admits Bouchut.
Turnover rise in Belgium
Belgium is one of the very scarce positive points for Carrefour, as turnover grew 6.7% to 2.04 billion euro for the first six months of this year. An important note here is, that last year was a bad year with huge cost cuts, store closings and the subsequent social disaster. Notwithstanding the turnover rise, Carrefour’s market share dropped to 22.7% – getting further and further behind the two market leaders Delhaize and Colruyt.
Judging by the figures, the reorganisation was a success – adding 10.1% to Carrefour’s Belgian hypermarkets’ turnover. This success was particularly strong in the new Carrefour Planet hypermarkets. Chairman Lars Olofsson is indeed counting on the Planet to save his job, as discounter Dia’s flotation did not produce enough money to please demanding shareholders like LVMH and Colony Capital. They are still upset and embittered with the cancellation of the Brazilian plans (merger with Pão de Açúcar) and the delayed sale of Carrefour’s real estate branch.
