(Reuters) – Australia’s Coles posted a 2.9% jump in first-quarter sales on Thursday, driven primarily by strong performance in its supermarkets division on strong promotional activity and e-commerce growth.
Consumer spending remained strong during the quarter, driven by promotional value campaigns that included discounts and giveaways, contributing to sales growth for the Melbourne-headquartered retailer.
The country’s second-largest grocer posted group sales revenue of A$10.55 billion ($6.94 billion) for the 13 weeks to Sept. 29, compared with A$10.25 billion a year earlier and a Visible Alpha consensus of A$10.51 billion.
The grocer, which is currently under trial by the national corporate regulator for allegedly misleading customers, separately announced an agreement to construct its third automated distribution centre in Truganina, thereby taking its capital expenditure expectations to A$1.3 billion for fiscal 2025, compared with its previous guidance of A$1.2 billion.
The supermarket division, Coles’s biggest revenue-generating segment, posted A$9.51 billion in sales revenue for the quarter, compared to A$9.19 billion a year ago.
($1 = 1.5211 Australian dollars)
(Reporting by Shivangi Lahiri and Adwitiya Srivastava in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber and Alan Barona)
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