Carrefour SA, France’s largest retailer, reported a deceleration in quarterly sales growth as weakness in China offset growth at home and in Brazil.
Second-quarter revenue rose 4.2 percent to 21.4 billion euros ($23 billion), Boulogne-Billancourt, France-based Carrefour said on Thursday. That matched the median of 17 analysts’ estimates compiled by Bloomberg and is a slowdown from the first-quarter’s 6.2 percent gain.
Chief Executive Officer Georges Plassat is seeking to cement a revival by ramping up investment amid increased competition both at home and abroad. Carrefour has earmarked as much as 2.6 billion euros for projects this year including modernizing stores, adding collection points for online orders in France and opening three logistics centers in China.
All store formats in France grew on a like-for-like basis, excluding fuel and calendar effects, Carrefour said in a statement. In Brazil, sales advanced 7.1 on the same basis, in line with estimates. In China, they fell 12 percent.
Bloomberg News, edited by ESM
