Seven & i Posts 2.3-Fold Net Profit Growth in 1st Half

Tokyo, Oct. 9 (Jiji Press)–Seven & i Holdings Co. said Wednesday that its group net profit for the six months through August surged 2.3-fold from a year earlier to 121.8 billion yen, reflecting lower costs in the supermarket division and higher margins in the overseas convenience store business. The profit surge is also attributed to the absence of losses linked to the company’s withdrawal from online supermarket operations, which were booked a year earlier. The major retail group also reported an operating profit of 208.3 billion yen, up 11.4 pct. Meanwhile, its sales decreased 6.9 pct to 5,616.6 billion yen, due to a drop in gasoline sales at overseas convenience stores. The Seven & i group has sold its supermarket, restaurant and other non-convenience store businesses to U.S. investment firm Bain Capital. These operations will be excluded from its consolidated accounting starting in September. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]