STOCKHOLM, Sweden, April 25, 2002 (PRIMEZONE) -- Consolidated net sales (excluding VAT) for the month of March totalled SEK 2,884 m (2,751), an increase of 4.8% compared with the same period a year ago.
Net sales for the period January-March 2002 totalled SEK 7,990 m (7,595), an increase of 5.2%. For stores owned by the Group, the increase was 15.0% in Sweden, of which same stores accounted for 6.7%. Of total sales, the Swedish operations accounted for SEK 6,690 m (6,292) and Spar Finland for SEK 1,300 m (1,303).
Hemkop grew its sales by 0.7%. The decrease for same stores was 1.0%. Willys grew its sales by 33.4%, of which same stores accounted for 15.0 percentage points. Willys Hemma's sales were on the same level as previous year. The decrease for same stores was 4.2%. Spar Finland's sales fell by 0.1% and in local currency a decrease by 2.2%. For comparable stores owned by the Group the decrease was 2.0%.
Sales per business operation are broken down as follows:
Jan-March Jan-March
2002 2001 Change
SEK m. SEK m. %
Hemkop 1,607 1,596 0.7%
Willy's 1,938 1,453 33.4%
Willy's Hemma 252 252 0.0%
Spar Finland 1,300 1,303 -0.2%
Axfood wholesaling 4,843 4,196 15.4%
Other1) 494 552 -10.5%
Internal sales -2,444 -1,757 39.1%
Total 7,990 7,595 5.2%
1) Includes Axfood Direkt, Axfood Franchise, support companies and joint- Group functions.
Preliminary sales figures will be presented on the following dates:
April 7th May May 6th June June 1st August (Interim report) August 5th September September 23rd October (Quarterly report) October 6th November November 5th December
For further information, please contact: Lars Nilsson, Executive Vice President and CFO, tel. +46-8-553 998 11, +46-70-569 66 33 Kenneth Wall, Press Manager, Axfood, tel. +46-8-553 998 20, +46-703-124 122
About Axfood AB
Axfood AB is one of the largest listed food wholesale are retail companies in the Nordic market. The company conducts wholesale and retail trading under a number of brand names such as Hemkop, Willy's, Willy's Hemma, Spar, Vivo and Tempo. Consolidated annual sales are estimated at approximately SEK 32 billion, with approximately 8,600 full- year employees. The Axfood Group has approximately 700 stores in Sweden, of which 250 are wholly or partly owned. The remainder are run by independent merchants tied to the company through agreements. Axfood has some 300 stores in Finland, of which 80 are wholly owned and the remainder operated by independent merchants. The market share is nearly 20 per cent in Sweden and approximately 10 per cent in Finland. Axfood AB is listed on the A-list of the Stockholm Stock Exchange. Axel Johnson AB is the principal owner, with approximately 45 per cent of the shares.
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