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Wal-Mart De Mexico 2009 Sales Up 10% To Record MXN 269.4 Billion
 Anthony Harrup - Dow Jones Newswires
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January 09, 2010
Mexico City - Retailer Wal-Mart de Mexico SAB said Thursday that its sales rose 10% in 2009 to a record 269.4 billion pesos ($20.6 billion) as the company opened 275 stores and served 14% more customers.
In a press release, Walmex, as the country's biggest retailer is also known, said same-store sales in 2009 rose 3.4%, with 3.3% more customers who spent on average 0.1% more per visit. Same-store sales only compare stores that have been open at least a year.
Overall floor space last year rose 11% from 2008.
Walmex, which operates 1,472 supermarkets, restaurants and clothing stores, increased its sales last year despite a recession in which gross domestic product likely contracted 7% from 2008.
Walmex said December sales rose 10% from the year-ago month to MXN34.58 billion, with same-store sales and number of customers served both up 4.3%.
In addition to its store expansion, this year Walmex will acquire the operations of Wal-Mart Centroamerica from its parent company Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT) and regional investors.
The roughly $2.7 billion acquisition and merger will give the company an additional 519 stores and expand its operations to Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica.
Walmex V shares trading on the Mexican stock exchange fell 1.8% Thursday to MXN59.61.
Credit Suisse analyst Vanessa Quiroga said in a report earlier Thursday that the growth in sales could have come at the expense of profit margins.
"We believe aggressive competition and markdowns by all Mexican retailers could hurt profitability in 4Q09," Quiroga said.
Quiroga said different promotional campaigns in December by Walmex and its main competitors, Organizacion Soriana SAB and Comercial Mexicana, "reinforce our view that retailers face the strongest competition seen in the past several years."
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