Aeon Enjoys Record Annual Operating Profit

Tokyo, April 9 (Jiji Press)–Japanese retail giant Aeon Co. on Thursday reported a record-high consolidated operating profit of 270.4 billion yen for the year that ended in February, up 13.8 pct from the previous year. Meanwhile, rival Seven & i Holdings Co.’s group operating profit in the same year increased a meager 0.5 pct to 422.9 billion yen amid rising material and personnel costs for its domestic convenience store operations. Both Aeon President and CEO Akio Yoshida and Seven & i President and CEO Stephen Dacus showed concerns over higher electricity bills for the year through February 2027 due to heightening tensions over Iran. Aeon expects higher sales and profits in the current year, while Seven & i anticipates declines in both. In the latest reporting year, Aeon enjoyed sales and profit growth for the first time in two years. It performed well in the general merchandise store business thanks to expanded sales of private brand products and improved operational efficiency through digitalization. Net profit jumped 2.7 times to 72.6 billion yen as major drugstore operator Tsuruha Holdings Inc. became a consolidated subsidiary. “We are moving up energy-saving investment” in response to rising electricity bills, Yoshida said. Seven & i’s sales fell 12.9 pct to 10,430.2 billion yen due to a decrease in gasoline revenue at convenience stores in North America. Profit from domestic convenience store operations slid due to higher costs although sales went up. Meanwhile, group net profit soared 69.2 pct to 292.7 billion yen, after the company logged a loss in the preceding year because of the withdrawal from online supermarket business. Higher electricity bills are expected to hit Seven & i’s convenience store operations in Japan in autumn and later. Seven & i has asked for a stable supply of packaging containers from its business partners. If the Middle East situation continues to deteriorate, the impact will be significant, Dacus warned. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]