Shoprite lifts profit, cautious on outlook

Shoprite, which caters for the lower end of the retail market, said yesterday headline earnings per share rose to 208 cents in the six months to end-December and gave a cautious outlook for the rest of the year. The Cape Town-based company said sales rose 11.9 percent to 33.1 billion rand with its grocer unit affected by a drop in food inflation while its furniture unit booked more than 11 percent sales growth.

Retailers in Africa's biggest economy are back in favour as the economy crawls out of a recession and lower interest rates bolster consumer buying power but the outlook for the rest of the year is dicey due to high debt levels and job losses.