PARIS – Carrefour SA, the world’s second-largest retailer behind Wal-Mart Stores Inc., swung to a loss in the first half of 2009, hurt by one-off charges.
But the company, which is overhauling its operations in a bid to stay competitive, reiterated its full-year outlook, saying that it’s on track to meet its 2009 objectives.
Carrefour posted a loss of 58 million euros, or $77.1 million, in the January-June period, compared with a profit of 744 million euros, or $1.14 billion, in the same period a year earlier, due to an exceptional charge of 511 million, or $679 million. The charge included the write-down of the value of certain assets in Italy as well as restructuring and rebranding costs.
Dollar figures are converted at average exchange rates for the period.
For complete coverage, see Monday’s WWD.