Carrefour sales slump after market pull outs

PARIS - Agence France-Presse

Leading retailer Carrefour announced falling sales for the second quarter. AFP photo

French retail giant Carrefour reported yesterday a slump in its second-quarter sales, largely due to its decision to cease operations in several countries, although if sales from these countries were not taken into account, the dip in sales reached only 0.6 percent.

Sales for the period ending June reached 20.46 billion euros ($27 billion), down 5.7 percent from the figure a year ago, the company, world’s second-biggest retailer after the U.S. based Wal-Mart, said.
The sharp fall was due mostly to a much higher base of comparison in 2012, when figures included sales from Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Greece markets where Carrefour has withdrawn from.
The data also included sales in Turkey, where the retailer is currently renegotiating a partnership contract.

Carrefour’s presence in Turkey

Carrefour’s joint-venture presence in Turkey with the local conglomerate Sabancı Holding, CarrefourSA, undergoes a change to its shareholding structure after Sabancı in May 2013 reached an agreement to take a controlling interest in CarrefourSA for about 60 million euros, with Carrefour maintaining its 46.2 percent stake.

Before that statement by the two parties in May, there had been many speculations where scenarios including a Carrefour exit from Turkey, a potential Sabancı exit from retail sector, or a sale of CarrefourSA to a third party.