UPDATE 1 - Slovenia's Mercator sees strong H1 net profit growth

Consolidated revenue edged up 0.4% on the year to 1.06 billion euro, while the results from operating activities (EBIT) rose to 30 million euro in the first half, which is an increase of 77% over the same period of last year, Mercator said in a filing to the Ljubljana Stock Exchange.

The Mercator Group's EBITDA totalled 83 million euro in the January-June period. In the like period of the preceding year EBITDA amounted to 48.1 million euro, according to restated data.

Mercator also said it continues to carry out the largest investment in Mercator's history – the construction of a new logistics and distribution centre in Ljubljana.

“As part of the new investment cycle, Mercator is also planning to expand the logistics capacities of its sales network in Serbia,” the company noted, adding that Serbia in particular is a market where Mercator sees a major growth opportunity, including through takeovers, as the retail industry in Serbia is expected to consolidate very soon.

In the first six months of 2019, Mercator's investments into property, plants, and equipment (CAPEX) amounted to 9.7 million euro. Of this amount, 66.0% was used for investments in Slovenia and 34.0% was used for investments in international markets.

Investment into refurbishment and updates of existing units accounted for 52.0% of total investments; IT investments accounted for 19.4%; expansion of new retail units represented 12.8%; investments into distribution centres accounted for 6.0%; and the remaining 9.8% was invested in non-trade activities.

Capital expenditures of the Mercator Group in the period under review totalled 9.7 million euro, down 29.2% on the year.

In July, Mercator said it signed a 80 million euro super-senior facility arrangement with VTB Bank Europe.

The new super-senior facility at considerably better terms is an important part of the pursuit of Mercator's long-term strategy, the retailer said in a filing to the Ljubljana Stock Exchange.

($ = 0.9109 euro)