According to the Central Statistical Office, retail sales went up by 11.8% in monthly terms in March and surged by 15.7% y/y. The data proved that the trend for strong growth of retail sales has been sustained. It is a sign of improvement in Poles' financial situation and hints at further rise of domestic consumption. Positive sales results are constantly noted in several key sub-verticals: automotive, pharmaceutical, and clothing among others. In order to strengthen its market position, Jeronimo Martins decided to take over Plus Discount chain for EUR 320mn. Its competitors are also fighting for a market primacy: Emperia signed a cooperation agreement with Lewiatan, Bomi acquired Rast and Rabat Pomorze, and Tesco and Carrefour are to invest several hundred million zlotys in their expansion. The most surprising development in the clothing sector was a takeover of Artman by LPP. The key market players all focus on further ? domestic and foreign ? expansion in 2008. It will be financed mostly by bank loans and own funds rather than proceeds from share issues. Due to the negative sentiment on equity markets, most of clothing producers and distributors decided to postpone their plans of share floatation. Still Deni Cler, Reporter, and Semax are likely to debut on the Warsaw Stock Exchange later this year. German chain of domestic appliances ElectronicPartner opened its first shop in Poland, but other chains do not feel threatened due to their solid presence in the smaller cities. The future looks bright for most of retailers due to growth of disposable income for Poles.
|
