The group’s sales in Europe, excluding France, fell 2.2% to EUR5.8 billion, “impacted by continued pressure on consumption in Southern Europe,” Carrefour said in a statement Thursday.
It also said sales in Poland, Turkey and Romania were broadly stable, by comparison to other countries, and rose 4.7%, to EUR1.16 billion in the mentioned period.
In France, Carrefour sales rose 1.2% to EUR9.9 billion on the year in the third quarter, supported by improving sales trends in hypermarkets and supermarkets and by petrol sales. Also, sales at convenience formats continued to grow strongly.
Spain recorded a better quarter in a context marked by an increase in VAT on September 1, but pressure remained intense. Thus, Carrefour sales in Spain fell 3.2% to EUR2.32 billion.
In Italy, Carrefour sales declined 8.3%, to EUR1.32 billion due to a significant decrease in consumption and competitive pressure on the retail market, according to the statement.
Sales in Latin America were up 5.2% to EUR4.5 billion in the third quarter, while on Asian markets, sales rose 12.3%, to EUR2.26 billion.
Carrefour reported sales of EUR1.18 billion in Romania in 2011, up 4.8% on the year, mainly due to an extension in its store network.
In Romania, Carrefour has 25 hypermarkets, 59 supermarkets and eight Carrefour Express franchised convenience stores.